Trust Co. of Vermont Has $4.66 Million Position in Caterpillar Inc. $CAT

Trust Co. of Vermont increased its stake in shares of Caterpillar Inc. (NYSE:CAT) by 0.3% during the second quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor owned 11,993 shares of the industrial products company’s stock after buying an additional 40 shares during the quarter. Trust Co. of Vermont’s holdings in Caterpillar were worth $4,656,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other large investors have also added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Family Legacy Financial Solutions LLC acquired a new stake in Caterpillar during the second quarter worth approximately $32,000. Compass Financial Services Inc grew its position in Caterpillar by 49.2% during the first quarter. Compass Financial Services Inc now owns 94 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $31,000 after buying an additional 31 shares in the last quarter. Curat Global LLC acquired a new stake in Caterpillar during the first quarter worth approximately $33,000. Redmont Wealth Advisors LLC acquired a new stake in Caterpillar during the first quarter worth approximately $33,000. Finally, Maseco LLP acquired a new stake in shares of Caterpillar in the 2nd quarter valued at $45,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 70.98% of the company’s stock.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, Director Susan C. Schwab sold 2,324 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Friday, August 15th. The stock was sold at an average price of $410.00, for a total transaction of $952,840.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the director directly owned 6,917 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $2,835,970. This trade represents a 25.15% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this hyperlink. Also, Chairman Donald J. Umpleby III sold 17,168 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Tuesday, September 2nd. The stock was sold at an average price of $412.87, for a total value of $7,088,152.16. Following the transaction, the chairman directly owned 482,505 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $199,211,839.35. This represents a 3.44% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold a total of 38,819 shares of company stock valued at $16,885,492 in the last three months. Insiders own 0.33% of the company’s stock.

Caterpillar Stock Up 1.1%

Shares of CAT opened at $477.03 on Wednesday. The stock has a market capitalization of $223.48 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 24.26, a PEG ratio of 2.87 and a beta of 1.41. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.50, a quick ratio of 0.81 and a current ratio of 1.34. Caterpillar Inc. has a 52 week low of $267.30 and a 52 week high of $485.34. The stock has a fifty day moving average of $433.41 and a 200-day moving average of $375.62.

Caterpillar (NYSE:CAT) last announced its earnings results on Tuesday, August 5th. The industrial products company reported $4.72 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $4.88 by ($0.16). The company had revenue of $16.57 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $16.14 billion. Caterpillar had a return on equity of 48.95% and a net margin of 14.95%.The firm’s revenue for the quarter was down .7% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the prior year, the business earned $5.99 earnings per share. As a group, sell-side analysts anticipate that Caterpillar Inc. will post 19.86 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of brokerages have weighed in on CAT. Evercore ISI raised Caterpillar from an “in-line” rating to an “outperform” rating and set a $476.00 target price on the stock in a report on Tuesday, August 19th. Sanford C. Bernstein reaffirmed a “market perform” rating on shares of Caterpillar in a report on Monday, July 14th. Barclays raised their target price on Caterpillar from $383.00 to $425.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a report on Wednesday, August 6th. Melius raised Caterpillar from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating and set a $500.00 target price on the stock in a report on Wednesday, July 9th. Finally, Robert W. Baird raised their target price on Caterpillar from $495.00 to $540.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a report on Wednesday, September 17th. Two equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, eleven have issued a Buy rating and five have issued a Hold rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $466.53.

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.