Naviter Wealth LLC Lowers Stock Holdings in Caterpillar Inc. $CAT

Naviter Wealth LLC reduced its stake in Caterpillar Inc. (NYSE:CAT) by 2.4% during the 2nd quarter, HoldingsChannel reports. The firm owned 8,370 shares of the industrial products company’s stock after selling 207 shares during the period. Naviter Wealth LLC’s holdings in Caterpillar were worth $3,249,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission.

Other hedge funds and other institutional investors also recently modified their holdings of the company. Family Legacy Financial Solutions LLC purchased a new position in shares of Caterpillar in the 2nd quarter valued at approximately $32,000. Compass Financial Services Inc boosted its stake in shares of Caterpillar by 49.2% in the first quarter. Compass Financial Services Inc now owns 94 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $31,000 after buying an additional 31 shares in the last quarter. Redmont Wealth Advisors LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Caterpillar in the first quarter valued at approximately $33,000. Maseco LLP purchased a new stake in shares of Caterpillar in the second quarter valued at approximately $45,000. Finally, Richardson Financial Services Inc. boosted its stake in shares of Caterpillar by 109.1% in the second quarter. Richardson Financial Services Inc. now owns 115 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $45,000 after buying an additional 60 shares in the last quarter. 70.98% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Caterpillar Price Performance

CAT stock opened at $505.11 on Tuesday. The stock has a 50-day moving average price of $444.65 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $385.71. Caterpillar Inc. has a 12-month low of $267.30 and a 12-month high of $511.50. The company has a current ratio of 1.34, a quick ratio of 0.81 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.50. The company has a market cap of $236.64 billion, a PE ratio of 25.69, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 3.01 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 net margin of 14.95% and a return on equity of 48.95%. The firm had revenue of $16.57 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $16.14 billion. During the same period last year, the firm posted $5.99 EPS. Caterpillar’s revenue was down .7% on a year-over-year basis. As a group, research analysts predict that Caterpillar Inc. will post 19.86 EPS for the current year.

Caterpillar Dividend Announcement

The firm 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 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.2%. Caterpillar’s dividend payout ratio is currently 30.72%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of research firms recently weighed in on CAT. Oppenheimer lifted their price target on Caterpillar from $480.00 to $513.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research note on Monday, September 29th. Sanford C. Bernstein restated a “market perform” rating on shares of Caterpillar in a research note on Monday, July 14th. Jefferies Financial Group boosted their target price on Caterpillar from $500.00 to $570.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Wednesday, October 8th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. boosted their target price on Caterpillar from $475.00 to $520.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research report on Wednesday, August 6th. Finally, Robert W. Baird boosted their target price on Caterpillar from $495.00 to $540.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research report on Wednesday, September 17th. Two research analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, thirteen have issued a Buy rating and five have given a Hold rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, the company currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $488.13.

Insider Buying and Selling at Caterpillar

In other Caterpillar news, Chairman Donald J. Umpleby III sold 17,166 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, September 22nd. The stock was sold at an average price of $462.65, for a total transaction of $7,941,849.90. Following the transaction, the chairman owned 465,339 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $215,289,088.35. This trade represents a 3.56% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available at the SEC website. Also, insider Jason Kaiser sold 2,161 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, August 11th. The stock was sold at an average price of $417.70, for a total value of $902,649.70. Following the sale, the insider owned 8,632 shares in the company, valued at $3,605,586.40. The trade was a 20.02% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold 38,819 shares of company stock worth $16,885,492 over the last quarter. 0.33% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

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.