Aull & Monroe Investment Management Corp Has $7.79 Million Stake in Caterpillar Inc. (NYSE:CAT)

Aull & Monroe Investment Management Corp lessened its holdings in Caterpillar Inc. (NYSE:CAT - Free Report) by 6.1% in the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm owned 21,464 shares of the industrial products company's stock after selling 1,390 shares during the quarter. Caterpillar makes up about 4.0% of Aull & Monroe Investment Management Corp's investment portfolio, making the stock its largest holding. Aull & Monroe Investment Management Corp's holdings in Caterpillar were worth $7,786,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other hedge funds have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Halbert Hargrove Global Advisors LLC acquired a new position in Caterpillar in the fourth quarter worth $27,000. Noble Wealth Management PBC acquired a new position in shares of Caterpillar during the fourth quarter valued at $31,000. Capital Performance Advisors LLP acquired a new position in shares of Caterpillar during the third quarter valued at $36,000. Retirement Wealth Solutions LLC acquired a new position in shares of Caterpillar during the fourth quarter valued at $34,000. Finally, Whipplewood Advisors LLC acquired a new position in shares of Caterpillar during the fourth quarter valued at $36,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 70.98% of the company's stock.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several equities analysts have recently issued reports on CAT shares. Wedbush raised shares of Caterpillar to an "outperform" rating in a report on Monday, February 3rd. StockNews.com cut shares of Caterpillar from a "buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a research note on Tuesday, February 25th. Jefferies Financial Group lifted their price objective on shares of Caterpillar from $455.00 to $475.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a research note on Friday, December 6th. Truist Financial cut their price objective on shares of Caterpillar from $455.00 to $438.00 and set a "buy" rating on the stock in a research note on Monday, February 3rd. Finally, DA Davidson lifted their price objective on shares of Caterpillar from $350.00 to $357.00 and gave the company a "neutral" rating in a research note on Tuesday, February 4th. Two investment analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, eight have given a hold rating and nine have given a buy rating to the company's stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company has a consensus rating of "Hold" and an average target price of $383.80.

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Insider Buying and Selling at Caterpillar

In other news, Director Gerald Johnson purchased 100 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, February 4th. The stock was acquired at an average price of $365.57 per share, with a total value of $36,557.00. Following the purchase, the director now owns 3,053 shares in the company, valued at $1,116,085.21. This represents a 3.39 % increase in their position. The purchase was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Also, CFO Andrew R. J. Bonfield sold 10,000 shares of the business's stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, January 16th. The shares were sold at an average price of $380.09, for a total value of $3,800,900.00. Following the completion of the sale, the chief financial officer now directly owns 45,182 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $17,173,226.38. The trade was a 18.12 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Company insiders own 0.29% of the company's stock.

Caterpillar Trading Up 2.9 %

NYSE CAT traded up $9.96 on Friday, hitting $350.97. 3,061,142 shares of the company were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 2,503,377. The company's 50 day moving average price is $363.11 and its 200-day moving average price is $372.77. 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 firm has a market capitalization of $167.74 billion, a P/E ratio of 15.90, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.87 and a beta of 1.15. Caterpillar Inc. has a twelve month low of $307.05 and a twelve month high of $418.50.

Caterpillar (NYSE:CAT - Get Free Report) last released its earnings results on Thursday, January 30th. The industrial products company reported $5.14 earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $4.97 by $0.17. Caterpillar had a return on equity of 58.18% and a net margin of 16.65%. Analysts predict that Caterpillar Inc. will post 19.86 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Caterpillar Announces Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, February 20th. Shareholders of record on Tuesday, January 21st were paid a dividend of $1.41 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Tuesday, January 21st. This represents a $5.64 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.61%. Caterpillar's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 25.56%.

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.