Mitchell Mcleod Pugh & Williams Inc. Sells 792 Shares of Caterpillar Inc. (NYSE:CAT)

Mitchell Mcleod Pugh & Williams Inc. reduced its holdings in Caterpillar Inc. (NYSE:CAT) by 7.7% during the 4th quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund owned 9,477 shares of the industrial products company’s stock after selling 792 shares during the period. Caterpillar accounts for about 0.7% of Mitchell Mcleod Pugh & Williams Inc.’s portfolio, making the stock its 27th largest holding. Mitchell Mcleod Pugh & Williams Inc.’s holdings in Caterpillar were worth $3,438,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in CAT. Retirement Wealth Solutions LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Caterpillar in the 4th quarter valued at approximately $34,000. Fairscale Capital LLC acquired a new position in Caterpillar during the second quarter worth $36,000. Capital Performance Advisors LLP acquired a new stake in Caterpillar in the third quarter valued at $36,000. Kimelman & Baird LLC grew its position in shares of Caterpillar by 42.9% in the 3rd quarter. Kimelman & Baird LLC now owns 100 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $39,000 after acquiring an additional 30 shares during the period. Finally, Trivant Custom Portfolio Group LLC increased its stake in shares of Caterpillar by 130.0% during the 4th quarter. Trivant Custom Portfolio Group LLC now owns 115 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $42,000 after purchasing an additional 65 shares during the last quarter. 70.98% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of research firms recently commented on CAT. Bank of America lifted their price target on Caterpillar from $376.00 to $434.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Monday, September 30th. Citigroup decreased their target price on Caterpillar from $460.00 to $420.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a report on Tuesday, January 14th. Evercore ISI raised Caterpillar from an “underperform” rating to an “in-line” rating and set a $365.00 price target for the company in a report on Monday, January 13th. UBS Group increased their price objective on shares of Caterpillar from $285.00 to $295.00 and gave the company a “sell” rating in a research report on Monday, November 4th. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. lifted their target price on shares of Caterpillar from $500.00 to $515.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a report on Monday, December 9th. Three investment analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, eight have issued a hold rating and seven have given a buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, Caterpillar currently has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $380.60.

Insider Buying and Selling at Caterpillar

In other news, Director Daniel M. Dickinson sold 1,300 shares of the stock in a transaction on Wednesday, November 6th. The stock was sold at an average price of $418.00, for a total value of $543,400.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the director now directly owns 4,976 shares in the company, valued at approximately $2,079,968. This represents a 20.71 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Also, CFO Andrew R. J. Bonfield sold 10,000 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Thursday, January 16th. The stock was sold at an average price of $380.09, for a total value of $3,800,900.00. Following the sale, the chief financial officer now owns 45,182 shares in the company, valued at $17,173,226.38. This represents a 18.12 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold a total of 33,868 shares of company stock worth $13,480,389 over the last 90 days. Insiders own 0.29% of the company’s stock.

Caterpillar Price Performance

Caterpillar stock opened at $386.03 on Monday. The firm has a market cap of $186.38 billion, a PE ratio of 17.90, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.72 and a beta of 1.13. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.33, a current ratio of 1.40 and a quick ratio of 0.86. The stock’s fifty day moving average price is $380.09 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $367.29. Caterpillar Inc. has a one year low of $277.66 and a one year high of $418.50.

Caterpillar (NYSE:CAT) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, October 30th. The industrial products company reported $5.17 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $5.33 by ($0.16). The firm had revenue of $16.11 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $16.37 billion. Caterpillar had a return on equity of 59.09% and a net margin of 16.26%. The company’s quarterly revenue was down 4.2% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the previous year, the company earned $5.52 earnings per share. As a group, research analysts expect that Caterpillar Inc. will post 21.68 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Caterpillar Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, February 20th. Investors of record on Tuesday, January 21st will be paid a $1.41 dividend. This represents a $5.64 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.46%. The ex-dividend date is Tuesday, January 21st. Caterpillar’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 26.15%.

About Caterpillar

Caterpillar Inc manufactures and sells construction and mining equipment, off-highway diesel and natural gas engines, industrial gas turbines, and diesel-electric locomotives in worldwide. Its Construction Industries segment offers asphalt pavers, compactors, road reclaimers, forestry machines, cold planers, material handlers, track-type tractors, excavators, telehandlers, motor graders, and pipelayers; compact track, wheel, track-type, backhoe, and skid steer loaders; and related parts and tools.