Jacobi Capital Management LLC Cuts Stock Holdings in Caterpillar Inc. (NYSE:CAT)

Jacobi Capital Management LLC reduced its position in shares of Caterpillar Inc. (NYSE:CAT) by 2.0% in the 4th quarter, HoldingsChannel reports. The firm owned 12,267 shares of the industrial products company’s stock after selling 250 shares during the period. Jacobi Capital Management LLC’s holdings in Caterpillar were worth $4,450,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission.

Several other large investors have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in CAT. Geode Capital Management LLC increased its holdings in Caterpillar by 0.7% in the third quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 10,213,455 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $3,987,206,000 after buying an additional 67,148 shares in the last quarter. Fisher Asset Management LLC increased its holdings in Caterpillar by 1.4% in the fourth quarter. Fisher Asset Management LLC now owns 9,081,775 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $3,294,505,000 after buying an additional 129,143 shares in the last quarter. UBS AM a distinct business unit of UBS ASSET MANAGEMENT AMERICAS LLC grew its position in shares of Caterpillar by 1.8% in the third quarter. UBS AM a distinct business unit of UBS ASSET MANAGEMENT AMERICAS LLC now owns 3,627,513 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $1,418,793,000 after purchasing an additional 64,452 shares during the last quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. grew its position in shares of Caterpillar by 0.3% in the third quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. now owns 3,227,378 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $1,262,290,000 after purchasing an additional 8,088 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Diamond Hill Capital Management Inc. grew its position in shares of Caterpillar by 2.3% in the third quarter. Diamond Hill Capital Management Inc. now owns 1,349,608 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $527,859,000 after purchasing an additional 30,609 shares during the last quarter. 70.98% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Caterpillar Stock Performance

Shares of CAT stock opened at $343.90 on Friday. Caterpillar Inc. has a 52 week low of $307.05 and a 52 week high of $418.50. The company has a market cap of $164.36 billion, a PE ratio of 15.58, a P/E/G ratio of 1.87 and a beta of 1.12. The company has a current ratio of 1.42, a quick ratio of 0.89 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.40. The company’s fifty day simple moving average is $365.99 and its 200-day simple moving average is $372.71.

Caterpillar (NYSE:CAT) last released its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, January 30th. The industrial products company reported $5.14 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $4.97 by $0.17. Caterpillar had a net margin of 16.65% and a return on equity of 58.18%. As a group, equities research analysts anticipate that Caterpillar Inc. will post 19.86 EPS for the current year.

Caterpillar Announces Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, February 20th. Stockholders of record on Tuesday, January 21st were issued a $1.41 dividend. This represents a $5.64 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.64%. The ex-dividend date was Tuesday, January 21st. Caterpillar’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 25.56%.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, CFO Andrew R. J. Bonfield sold 10,000 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, January 16th. The stock was sold at an average price of $380.09, for a total transaction of $3,800,900.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief financial officer now owns 45,182 shares in the company, valued at $17,173,226.38. The trade was a 18.12 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available through this hyperlink. Also, Director Gerald Johnson acquired 100 shares of Caterpillar stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, February 4th. The shares were bought at an average price of $365.57 per share, with a total value of $36,557.00. Following the transaction, the director now directly owns 3,053 shares in the company, valued at approximately $1,116,085.21. This trade represents a 3.39 % increase in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this purchase can be found here. 0.29% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several analysts have recently commented on CAT shares. UBS Group upgraded shares of Caterpillar from a “sell” rating to a “neutral” rating and increased their price target for the company from $355.00 to $385.00 in a research report on Monday, February 3rd. Evercore ISI raised their target price on shares of Caterpillar from $365.00 to $375.00 and gave the stock an “in-line” rating in a research report on Wednesday, February 19th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. decreased their target price on shares of Caterpillar from $515.00 to $490.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a research report on Friday, January 31st. Wedbush upgraded shares of Caterpillar to an “outperform” rating in a research report on Monday, February 3rd. Finally, Raymond James upgraded shares of Caterpillar from a “market perform” rating to an “outperform” rating in a research report on Monday, February 3rd. Two investment analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, eight have given a hold rating and nine have given a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the company currently has an average rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $383.80.

Caterpillar 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.