Hixon Zuercher LLC Sells 2,028 Shares of Caterpillar Inc. $CAT

Hixon Zuercher LLC lowered its stake in Caterpillar Inc. (NYSE:CAT) by 8.7% in the second quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the SEC. The institutional investor owned 21,407 shares of the industrial products company’s stock after selling 2,028 shares during the quarter. Caterpillar comprises 2.7% of Hixon Zuercher LLC’s portfolio, making the stock its 7th largest position. Hixon Zuercher LLC’s holdings in Caterpillar were worth $8,311,000 as of its most recent filing with the SEC.

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently bought and sold shares of CAT. Mid American Wealth Advisory Group Inc. acquired a new stake in Caterpillar in the second quarter valued at approximately $28,000. Compass Financial Services Inc grew its holdings in Caterpillar by 49.2% during the 1st quarter. Compass Financial Services Inc now owns 94 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $31,000 after purchasing an additional 31 shares in the last quarter. Family Legacy Financial Solutions LLC purchased a new stake in Caterpillar during the 2nd quarter worth $32,000. Redmont Wealth Advisors LLC acquired a new position in Caterpillar in the 1st quarter worth $33,000. Finally, Harbor Asset Planning Inc. purchased a new position in Caterpillar in the 2nd quarter valued at about $34,000. 70.98% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Insider Activity at Caterpillar

In other Caterpillar news, Director Susan C. Schwab sold 2,324 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Friday, August 15th. The shares were sold at an average price of $410.00, for a total value of $952,840.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the director owned 6,917 shares in the company, valued at approximately $2,835,970. This represents a 25.15% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this link. Also, Chairman Donald J. Umpleby III sold 17,168 shares of Caterpillar stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, September 2nd. The shares were sold at an average price of $412.87, for a total value of $7,088,152.16. Following the sale, the chairman directly owned 482,505 shares in the company, valued at approximately $199,211,839.35. This trade represents a 3.44% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold 55,985 shares of company stock worth $25,559,300 in the last 90 days. 0.33% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of brokerages have recently issued reports on CAT. Royal Bank Of Canada started coverage on Caterpillar in a research report on Wednesday. They set a “sector perform” rating and a $560.00 target price on the stock. DA Davidson lifted their price objective on Caterpillar from $331.00 to $388.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a report on Tuesday, July 22nd. Melius Research upgraded Caterpillar from a “hold” rating to a “strong-buy” rating and set a $500.00 target price for the company in a research note on Wednesday, July 9th. Robert W. Baird lifted their price target on shares of Caterpillar from $540.00 to $612.00 in a research note on Monday, October 20th. Finally, Oppenheimer increased their price objective on shares of Caterpillar from $480.00 to $513.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research note on Monday, September 29th. Two investment analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, thirteen have given a Buy rating and six have given a Hold rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the company has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $518.19.

Caterpillar Stock Performance

Caterpillar stock opened at $522.13 on Friday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.50, a current ratio of 1.34 and a quick ratio of 0.81. Caterpillar Inc. has a 12 month low of $267.30 and a 12 month high of $544.99. The company has a fifty day moving average price of $464.46 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $399.24. The company has a market cap of $244.61 billion, a PE ratio of 26.56, a P/E/G ratio of 2.98 and a beta of 1.46.

Caterpillar (NYSE:CAT) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, August 5th. The industrial products company reported $4.72 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $4.88 by ($0.16). Caterpillar had a return on equity of 48.95% and a net margin of 14.95%.The business had revenue of $16.57 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $16.14 billion. During the same quarter in the previous year, the business posted $5.99 earnings per share. The company’s quarterly revenue was down .7% compared to the same quarter last year. Research analysts expect 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 Thursday, November 20th. Investors of record on Monday, October 20th will be issued a $1.51 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, October 20th. This represents a $6.04 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.2%. Caterpillar’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 30.72%.

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.