Treasurer of the State of North Carolina Sells 29,092 Shares of Caterpillar Inc. $CAT

Treasurer of the State of North Carolina decreased its stake in shares of Caterpillar Inc. (NYSE:CAT) by 11.9% in the 2nd quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the SEC. The firm owned 216,302 shares of the industrial products company’s stock after selling 29,092 shares during the period. Treasurer of the State of North Carolina’s holdings in Caterpillar were worth $83,971,000 as of its most recent filing with the SEC.

Several other large investors have also recently bought and sold shares of CAT. Valeo Financial Advisors LLC boosted its holdings in shares of Caterpillar by 36,842.1% during the second quarter. Valeo Financial Advisors LLC now owns 7,299,751 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $2,833,836,000 after acquiring an additional 7,279,991 shares during the period. Norges Bank acquired a new stake in Caterpillar during the 2nd quarter worth approximately $2,165,899,000. Assenagon Asset Management S.A. boosted its stake in Caterpillar by 546.6% in the 2nd quarter. Assenagon Asset Management S.A. now owns 843,093 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $327,297,000 after purchasing an additional 712,711 shares during the period. Marshall Wace LLP grew its holdings in Caterpillar by 425.2% in the 2nd quarter. Marshall Wace LLP now owns 761,800 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $295,738,000 after buying an additional 616,739 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Laurel Wealth Advisors LLC increased its position in Caterpillar by 36,586.2% during the 2nd quarter. Laurel Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 433,631 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $168,340,000 after buying an additional 432,449 shares during the period. 70.98% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several research firms recently commented on CAT. Royal Bank Of Canada started coverage on shares of Caterpillar in a research note on Wednesday, October 22nd. They issued a “sector perform” rating and a $560.00 price target on the stock. Erste Group Bank raised Caterpillar from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a report on Friday, October 3rd. Wells Fargo & Company assumed coverage on shares of Caterpillar in a research report on Thursday, November 13th. They issued an “overweight” rating and a $675.00 target price on the stock. Robert W. Baird upped their target price on Caterpillar from $612.00 to $680.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a report on Thursday, October 30th. Finally, Argus raised their price target on shares of Caterpillar from $460.00 to $625.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Wednesday, November 19th. Three research analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, sixteen have issued a Buy rating, five have assigned a Hold rating and one has given a Sell rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, Caterpillar presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $612.16.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other news, Chairman Donald J. Umpleby III sold 17,166 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, October 10th. The stock was sold at an average price of $505.29, for a total transaction of $8,673,808.14. Following the completion of the sale, the chairman owned 448,173 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $226,457,335.17. This represents a 3.69% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. Also, insider Lange Bob De sold 14,638 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, November 5th. The stock was sold at an average price of $562.36, for a total value of $8,231,825.68. Following the completion of the sale, the insider directly owned 80,209 shares in the company, valued at $45,106,333.24. The trade was a 15.43% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. Over the last quarter, insiders have sold 79,061 shares of company stock worth $41,949,366. 0.33% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Caterpillar Price Performance

Shares of NYSE:CAT opened at $625.59 on Friday. Caterpillar Inc. has a 1-year low of $267.30 and a 1-year high of $626.81. The stock has a market cap of $292.76 billion, a PE ratio of 32.11, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.90 and a beta of 1.57. The stock’s fifty day simple moving average is $552.64 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $459.04. The company has a current ratio of 1.38, a quick ratio of 0.86 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.34.

Caterpillar (NYSE:CAT) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, October 29th. The industrial products company reported $4.95 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $4.52 by $0.43. The firm had revenue of $17.64 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $16.72 billion. Caterpillar had a return on equity of 47.16% and a net margin of 14.34%.The business’s revenue for the quarter was up 9.5% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the prior year, the company earned $5.17 EPS. As a group, analysts forecast that Caterpillar Inc. will post 19.86 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Caterpillar Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, February 19th. Stockholders of record on Tuesday, January 20th will be issued a dividend of $1.51 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Tuesday, January 20th. This represents a $6.04 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.0%. Caterpillar’s payout ratio is presently 31.01%.

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.