Teachers Retirement System of The State of Kentucky Has $13.02 Million Position in Caterpillar Inc. (NYSE:CAT)

Teachers Retirement System of The State of Kentucky reduced its stake in Caterpillar Inc. (NYSE:CAT) by 3.5% in the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 35,901 shares of the industrial products company’s stock after selling 1,288 shares during the period. Teachers Retirement System of The State of Kentucky’s holdings in Caterpillar were worth $13,024,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently made changes to their positions in CAT. Tradition Wealth Management LLC boosted its holdings in Caterpillar by 8.8% in the fourth quarter. Tradition Wealth Management LLC now owns 2,696 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $978,000 after acquiring an additional 218 shares in the last quarter. Transce3nd LLC bought a new position in shares of Caterpillar in the 4th quarter worth $233,000. Trajan Wealth LLC acquired a new stake in Caterpillar in the 4th quarter valued at $4,776,000. Kayne Anderson Rudnick Investment Management LLC increased its stake in Caterpillar by 117.6% during the 4th quarter. Kayne Anderson Rudnick Investment Management LLC now owns 346 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $126,000 after purchasing an additional 187 shares in the last quarter. Finally, MML Investors Services LLC raised its holdings in Caterpillar by 1.0% during the fourth quarter. MML Investors Services LLC now owns 148,102 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $53,725,000 after buying an additional 1,459 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors own 70.98% of the company’s stock.

Caterpillar Price Performance

NYSE CAT opened at $284.31 on Tuesday. The company has a market cap of $135.88 billion, a PE ratio of 12.88, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.87 and a beta of 1.21. The company has a quick ratio of 0.89, a current ratio of 1.42 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.40. The firm’s 50-day simple moving average is $325.73 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $362.79. Caterpillar Inc. has a 52 week low of $267.30 and a 52 week high of $418.50.

Caterpillar (NYSE:CAT) last issued its earnings results on Thursday, January 30th. The industrial products company reported $5.14 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $4.97 by $0.17. Caterpillar had a net margin of 16.65% and a return on equity of 58.18%. Research analysts predict that Caterpillar Inc. will post 19.86 earnings per share for the current year.

Caterpillar Announces Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, May 20th. Stockholders of record on Monday, April 21st will be given a dividend of $1.41 per share. This represents a $5.64 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.98%. The ex-dividend date is Monday, April 21st. Caterpillar’s dividend payout ratio is presently 25.56%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

CAT has been the subject of several recent research reports. Truist Financial decreased their target price on shares of Caterpillar from $438.00 to $389.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a research report on Tuesday, April 8th. Raymond James raised Caterpillar from a “market perform” rating to an “outperform” rating in a research note on Monday, February 3rd. Wedbush upgraded Caterpillar to an “outperform” rating in a report on Monday, February 3rd. Morgan Stanley upgraded Caterpillar from an “underweight” rating to an “equal weight” rating and dropped their price objective for the company from $300.00 to $283.00 in a research note on Wednesday, April 16th. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. lowered their target price on shares of Caterpillar from $490.00 to $380.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a report on Monday, April 14th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, eight have issued a hold rating and eight have given a buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has an average rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $359.36.

Insider Transactions at Caterpillar

In related news, insider Jason Kaiser sold 2,425 shares of Caterpillar stock in a transaction on Tuesday, February 18th. The stock was sold at an average price of $354.70, for a total transaction of $860,147.50. Following the completion of the sale, the insider now owns 6,275 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $2,225,742.50. This trade represents a 27.87 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through the SEC website. Also, Director Gerald Johnson bought 100 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Tuesday, February 4th. The stock was acquired at an average price of $365.57 per share, for a total transaction of $36,557.00. Following the completion of the purchase, the director now directly owns 3,053 shares in the company, valued at approximately $1,116,085.21. The trade was a 3.39 % increase in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this purchase can be found here. Insiders own 0.29% of the company’s stock.

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.