Wedmont Private Capital Trims Holdings in Caterpillar Inc. (NYSE:CAT)

Wedmont Private Capital reduced its holdings in shares of Caterpillar Inc. (NYSE:CAT) by 2.5% in the first quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm owned 7,148 shares of the industrial products company’s stock after selling 183 shares during the period. Wedmont Private Capital’s holdings in Caterpillar were worth $2,357,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other hedge funds have also bought and sold shares of CAT. Flagship Wealth Advisors LLC bought a new stake in shares of Caterpillar in the 4th quarter worth approximately $26,000. Halbert Hargrove Global Advisors LLC bought a new stake in Caterpillar in the fourth quarter worth $27,000. Cyrus J. Lawrence LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Caterpillar in the fourth quarter worth $27,000. Noble Wealth Management PBC bought a new position in shares of Caterpillar during the fourth quarter valued at $31,000. Finally, Investment Management Corp VA ADV purchased a new position in shares of Caterpillar in the 4th quarter worth about $33,000. Institutional investors own 70.98% of the company’s stock.

Caterpillar Trading Up 1.3%

Shares of CAT stock opened at $353.49 on Friday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.40, a current ratio of 1.42 and a quick ratio of 0.89. The company has a market cap of $166.51 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 16.02, a PEG ratio of 1.87 and a beta of 1.37. Caterpillar Inc. has a 1 year low of $267.30 and a 1 year high of $418.50. The firm has a fifty day moving average price of $320.74 and a 200-day moving average price of $349.69.

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

Caterpillar Announces Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, May 20th. Shareholders of record on Monday, April 21st were issued a dividend of $1.41 per share. This represents a $5.64 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.60%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Monday, April 21st. Caterpillar’s dividend payout ratio is currently 27.49%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several research analysts have issued reports on the stock. Bank of America lifted 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. JPMorgan Chase & Co. decreased their target price on Caterpillar from $490.00 to $380.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a research report on Monday, April 14th. Morgan Stanley raised shares of Caterpillar from an “underweight” rating to an “equal weight” rating and dropped their price target for the company from $300.00 to $283.00 in a report on Wednesday, April 16th. DA Davidson boosted their price objective on shares of Caterpillar from $325.00 to $331.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a report on Monday, May 5th. Finally, Wall Street Zen cut shares of Caterpillar from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Tuesday, February 25th. Six equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, nine have assigned a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, Caterpillar presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $372.92.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other news, Director David Maclennan bought 375 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, May 7th. The shares were bought at an average price of $320.70 per share, for a total transaction of $120,262.50. Following the purchase, the director now owns 6,653 shares in the company, valued at $2,133,617.10. This represents a 5.97% increase in their ownership of the stock. The acquisition was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available through this link. Company insiders own 0.33% of the company’s stock.

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.