Caterpillar Inc. (NYSE:CAT) Stake Reduced by Hoey Investments Inc.

Hoey Investments Inc. cut its holdings in Caterpillar Inc. (NYSE:CAT) by 47.9% during the 1st quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 1,143 shares of the industrial products company’s stock after selling 1,050 shares during the quarter. Hoey Investments Inc.’s holdings in Caterpillar were worth $377,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently bought and sold shares of the company. Pacific Point Advisors LLC acquired a new stake in Caterpillar during the 4th quarter worth about $579,000. Brighton Jones LLC boosted its holdings in shares of Caterpillar by 51.5% in the fourth quarter. Brighton Jones LLC now owns 7,409 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $2,688,000 after buying an additional 2,519 shares during the period. Union Bancaire Privee UBP SA acquired a new position in shares of Caterpillar in the fourth quarter worth about $7,396,000. Ingalls & Snyder LLC boosted its holdings in shares of Caterpillar by 2.9% in the fourth quarter. Ingalls & Snyder LLC now owns 5,345 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $1,939,000 after buying an additional 150 shares during the period. Finally, Catalyst Financial Partners LLC boosted its holdings in shares of Caterpillar by 0.9% in the fourth quarter. Catalyst Financial Partners LLC now owns 4,664 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $1,692,000 after buying an additional 41 shares during the period. 70.98% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Insider Activity at Caterpillar

In related news, Director David Maclennan bought 375 shares of Caterpillar stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, May 7th. The stock was purchased at an average cost of $320.70 per share, for a total transaction of $120,262.50. Following the acquisition, the director now owns 6,653 shares in the company, valued at $2,133,617.10. This trade represents a 5.97% increase in their ownership of the stock. The acquisition was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is accessible through the SEC website. 0.33% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Caterpillar Trading Down 1.2%

Shares of NYSE CAT opened at $356.79 on Friday. The stock has a market cap of $168.06 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 16.17, a PEG ratio of 1.87 and a beta of 1.37. The business has a 50 day simple moving average of $327.10 and a 200 day simple moving average of $348.63. Caterpillar Inc. has a 52 week low of $267.30 and a 52 week high of $418.50. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.40, a quick ratio of 0.89 and a current ratio of 1.42.

Caterpillar (NYSE:CAT) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, April 30th. The industrial products company reported $4.25 EPS for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $4.35 by ($0.10). The firm had revenue of $14.25 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $14.64 billion. Caterpillar had a net margin of 16.65% and a return on equity of 58.18%. The company’s quarterly revenue was down 9.8% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the previous year, the firm posted $5.60 EPS. On average, research analysts predict that Caterpillar Inc. will post 19.86 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Caterpillar Increases Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, August 20th. Investors of record on Monday, July 21st will be paid a $1.51 dividend. This is a boost from Caterpillar’s previous quarterly dividend of $1.41. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, July 21st. This represents a $6.04 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.69%. Caterpillar’s payout ratio is presently 27.49%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several research analysts have commented on CAT shares. Baird R W upgraded shares of Caterpillar from a “hold” rating to a “strong-buy” rating in a report on Tuesday, May 13th. Bank of America raised their target price on shares of Caterpillar from $335.00 to $385.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Friday, May 30th. UBS Group raised Caterpillar from a “sell” rating to a “neutral” rating and lifted their target price for the company from $272.00 to $357.00 in a research note on Friday, May 16th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. lowered their target price on Caterpillar from $490.00 to $380.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a research note on Monday, April 14th. Finally, Wall Street Zen cut Caterpillar from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Tuesday, February 25th. Six analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, nine have given a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $372.92.

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.