Montz Harcus Wealth Management LLC Sells 34 Shares of Caterpillar Inc. (NYSE:CAT)

Montz Harcus Wealth Management LLC decreased its stake in shares of Caterpillar Inc. (NYSE:CAT) by 1.9% during the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 1,790 shares of the industrial products company’s stock after selling 34 shares during the period. Montz Harcus Wealth Management LLC’s holdings in Caterpillar were worth $650,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other hedge funds have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the stock. Retirement Wealth Solutions LLC acquired a new stake in Caterpillar in the fourth quarter worth about $34,000. Capital Performance Advisors LLP acquired a new stake in Caterpillar during the 3rd quarter worth $36,000. Albion Financial Group UT raised its position in shares of Caterpillar by 334.8% during the 4th quarter. Albion Financial Group UT now owns 100 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $36,000 after acquiring an additional 77 shares during the last quarter. Kimelman & Baird LLC boosted 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 worth $39,000 after purchasing an additional 30 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Trivant Custom Portfolio Group LLC increased its holdings in Caterpillar by 130.0% in the fourth quarter. Trivant Custom Portfolio Group LLC now owns 115 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $42,000 after purchasing an additional 65 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors own 70.98% of the company’s stock.

Caterpillar Price Performance

NYSE:CAT opened at $362.61 on Wednesday. The stock’s 50-day simple moving average is $375.80 and its 200 day simple moving average is $371.86. Caterpillar Inc. has a 52-week low of $307.05 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. The company has a market cap of $175.07 billion, a P/E ratio of 16.43, a P/E/G ratio of 1.94 and a beta of 1.12.

Caterpillar (NYSE:CAT) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, January 30th. The industrial products company reported $5.14 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $4.97 by $0.17. Caterpillar had a return on equity of 58.18% and a net margin of 16.65%. As a group, sell-side analysts forecast that Caterpillar Inc. will post 20.05 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Caterpillar Announces Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, February 20th. Shareholders of record on Tuesday, January 21st will be given a dividend of $1.41 per share. This represents a $5.64 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.56%. The ex-dividend date is Tuesday, January 21st. Caterpillar’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 25.56%.

Insider Activity

In related news, Director Gerald Johnson acquired 100 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Wednesday, December 4th. The stock was purchased at an average cost of $398.57 per share, for a total transaction of $39,857.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the director now directly owns 2,953 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $1,176,977.21. The trade was a 3.51 % increase in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this link. Also, CFO Andrew R. J. Bonfield sold 10,000 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred 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 transaction, the chief financial officer now owns 45,182 shares in the company, valued at approximately $17,173,226.38. This trade represents a 18.12 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders own 0.29% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of equities analysts have issued reports on the company. JPMorgan Chase & Co. reduced their target price on Caterpillar from $515.00 to $490.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a report on Friday, January 31st. Bank of America decreased their price objective on shares of Caterpillar from $452.00 to $414.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a report on Friday, January 31st. UBS Group raised shares of Caterpillar from a “sell” rating to a “neutral” rating and lifted their price target for the stock from $355.00 to $385.00 in a research report on Monday, February 3rd. StockNews.com upgraded shares of Caterpillar from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a research report on Tuesday. Finally, Morgan Stanley reduced their target price on Caterpillar from $330.00 to $300.00 and set an “underweight” rating on the stock in a report on Friday, January 31st. Two research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, eight have issued a hold rating and eight have assigned a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat, the stock presently has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $383.13.

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.