L & S Advisors Inc Reduces Stake in Caterpillar Inc. $CAT

L & S Advisors Inc lessened its stake in shares of Caterpillar Inc. (NYSE:CAT) by 35.6% in the second quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 8,029 shares of the industrial products company’s stock after selling 4,444 shares during the quarter. L & S Advisors Inc’s holdings in Caterpillar were worth $3,117,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently modified their holdings of the company. Pacific Point Advisors LLC bought a new position in shares of Caterpillar in the fourth quarter worth $579,000. Brighton Jones LLC raised its holdings in shares of Caterpillar by 51.5% in the 4th quarter. Brighton Jones LLC now owns 7,409 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $2,688,000 after acquiring an additional 2,519 shares in the last quarter. Summit X LLC grew its holdings in shares of Caterpillar by 3.2% during the first quarter. Summit X LLC now owns 1,025 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $338,000 after purchasing an additional 32 shares in the last quarter. Ascent Wealth Partners LLC increased its position in shares of Caterpillar by 0.6% in the first quarter. Ascent Wealth Partners LLC now owns 16,239 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $5,356,000 after purchasing an additional 102 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Concord Wealth Partners raised its stake in Caterpillar by 10.5% in the first quarter. Concord Wealth Partners now owns 10,209 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $3,367,000 after purchasing an additional 973 shares in the last quarter. 70.98% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Caterpillar Trading Down 3.4%

Shares of CAT opened at $553.61 on Friday. The firm has a fifty day simple moving average of $503.67 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $425.24. Caterpillar Inc. has a twelve month low of $267.30 and a twelve month high of $596.21. The stock has a market capitalization of $259.08 billion, a P/E ratio of 28.42, a PEG ratio of 3.33 and a beta of 1.51. The company has a quick ratio of 0.81, a current ratio of 1.38 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.34.

Caterpillar (NYSE:CAT) last posted its earnings results on Wednesday, October 29th. The industrial products company reported $4.95 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $4.52 by $0.43. The company had revenue of $17.64 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $16.72 billion. Caterpillar had a return on equity of 47.16% and a net margin of 14.34%.Caterpillar’s quarterly revenue was up 9.5% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period last year, the firm earned $5.17 earnings per share. On average, research analysts anticipate that Caterpillar Inc. will post 19.86 EPS for the current year.

Caterpillar Announces Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, November 20th. Investors of record on Monday, October 20th will be given a dividend of $1.51 per share. The ex-dividend date is Monday, October 20th. This represents a $6.04 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.1%. Caterpillar’s payout ratio is currently 31.01%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several research firms have recently weighed in on CAT. DA Davidson raised their price objective on shares of Caterpillar from $408.00 to $569.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research report on Monday, November 3rd. Royal Bank Of Canada initiated coverage on Caterpillar in a research note on Wednesday, October 22nd. They set a “sector perform” rating and a $560.00 price target for the company. JPMorgan Chase & Co. raised their price objective on Caterpillar from $650.00 to $730.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a report on Thursday, October 30th. Erste Group Bank upgraded Caterpillar from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a research report on Friday, October 3rd. Finally, Oppenheimer lifted their price target on shares of Caterpillar from $513.00 to $645.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research note on Thursday, October 30th. Three equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, fifteen have given a Buy rating, five have assigned a Hold rating and one has given a Sell rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $600.94.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other news, Chairman Donald J. Umpleby III sold 17,168 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, September 2nd. The stock was sold at an average price of $412.87, for a total value of $7,088,152.16. Following the completion of the transaction, the chairman owned 482,505 shares in the company, valued at $199,211,839.35. This trade represents a 3.44% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available through this hyperlink. Also, CAO William E. Schaupp sold 1,200 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Wednesday, November 5th. The stock was sold at an average price of $572.22, for a total value of $686,664.00. Following the completion of the sale, the chief accounting officer directly owned 1,323 shares in the company, valued at approximately $757,047.06. The trade was a 47.56% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale is available in the SEC filing. Insiders sold 86,229 shares of company stock valued at $43,323,118 over the last quarter. 0.33% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

Caterpillar Company Profile

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.