IHT Wealth Management LLC Lowers Stock Position in Caterpillar Inc. (NYSE:CAT)

IHT Wealth Management LLC cut its stake in Caterpillar Inc. (NYSE:CAT - Free Report) by 26.6% during the 4th quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund owned 9,937 shares of the industrial products company's stock after selling 3,595 shares during the period. IHT Wealth Management LLC's holdings in Caterpillar were worth $3,605,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other institutional investors and hedge funds have also added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Norges Bank bought a new position in Caterpillar during the fourth quarter worth $2,184,364,000. Capital Research Global Investors raised its position in shares of Caterpillar by 69.3% in the 4th quarter. Capital Research Global Investors now owns 2,924,054 shares of the industrial products company's stock worth $1,060,730,000 after acquiring an additional 1,196,861 shares in the last quarter. Raymond James Financial Inc. acquired a new position in shares of Caterpillar in the 4th quarter valued at about $353,231,000. Proficio Capital Partners LLC boosted its position in shares of Caterpillar by 50,072.7% during the 4th quarter. Proficio Capital Partners LLC now owns 804,770 shares of the industrial products company's stock valued at $291,938,000 after purchasing an additional 803,166 shares in the last quarter. Finally, APG Asset Management N.V. increased its holdings in Caterpillar by 1,278.6% in the fourth quarter. APG Asset Management N.V. now owns 440,641 shares of the industrial products company's stock worth $154,367,000 after purchasing an additional 408,678 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 70.98% of the company's stock.

Analyst Ratings Changes

CAT has been the subject of several recent analyst reports. DA Davidson reduced their price objective on shares of Caterpillar from $357.00 to $325.00 and set a "neutral" rating for the company in a research report on Monday. Bank of America reduced their price target on shares of Caterpillar from $452.00 to $414.00 and set a "buy" rating for the company in a report on Friday, January 31st. Evercore ISI upped their price objective on shares of Caterpillar from $365.00 to $375.00 and gave the company an "in-line" rating in a report on Wednesday, February 19th. Citigroup decreased their target price on Caterpillar from $430.00 to $320.00 and set a "buy" rating for the company in a research report on Tuesday, April 8th. Finally, UBS Group upgraded Caterpillar from a "sell" rating to a "neutral" rating and increased their price target for the stock from $355.00 to $385.00 in a report on Monday, February 3rd. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, eight have assigned a hold rating and eight have given a buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, the company currently has a consensus rating of "Hold" and an average price target of $359.36.

Caterpillar Stock Performance

Shares of Caterpillar stock traded down $0.53 during mid-day trading on Friday, hitting $306.33. 2,162,365 shares of the stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 2,624,644. The company has a market capitalization of $146.40 billion, a P/E ratio of 13.88, a P/E/G ratio of 1.87 and a beta of 1.21. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.40, a quick ratio of 0.89 and a current ratio of 1.42. The company has a 50-day simple moving average of $322.40 and a 200 day simple moving average of $361.21. Caterpillar Inc. has a 12 month low of $267.30 and a 12 month high of $418.50.

Caterpillar (NYSE:CAT - Get Free Report) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, January 30th. The industrial products company reported $5.14 earnings per share for the quarter, topping 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%. Sell-side analysts anticipate that Caterpillar Inc. will post 19.86 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Caterpillar Announces Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, May 20th. Stockholders of record on Monday, April 21st will be given a dividend of $1.41 per share. This represents a $5.64 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.84%. The ex-dividend date is Monday, April 21st. Caterpillar's dividend payout ratio is currently 25.56%.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other news, Director Gerald Johnson purchased 100 shares of the business's stock in a transaction on Tuesday, February 4th. The stock was purchased at an average cost of $365.57 per share, with a total value of $36,557.00. Following the acquisition, the director now directly owns 3,053 shares in the company, valued at approximately $1,116,085.21. This trade represents a 3.39 % increase in their ownership of the stock. The purchase was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through the SEC website. Also, insider Jason Kaiser sold 2,425 shares of the company's stock in a transaction on Tuesday, February 18th. The stock was sold at an average price of $354.70, for a total transaction of $860,147.50. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider now directly owns 6,275 shares in the company, valued at approximately $2,225,742.50. The trade was a 27.87 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Company insiders own 0.29% 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.