Brown Brothers Harriman & Co. Acquires 3,142 Shares of Caterpillar Inc. (NYSE:CAT)

Brown Brothers Harriman & Co. lifted its holdings in shares of Caterpillar Inc. (NYSE:CAT - Free Report) by 31.1% in the third quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund owned 13,250 shares of the industrial products company's stock after acquiring an additional 3,142 shares during the quarter. Brown Brothers Harriman & Co.'s holdings in Caterpillar were worth $5,182,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other hedge funds have also bought and sold shares of CAT. Loomis Sayles & Co. L P boosted its holdings in shares of Caterpillar by 120.4% in the 3rd quarter. Loomis Sayles & Co. L P now owns 3,854 shares of the industrial products company's stock worth $1,507,000 after buying an additional 2,105 shares during the last quarter. Davis R M Inc. raised its position in Caterpillar by 15.5% in the third quarter. Davis R M Inc. now owns 3,601 shares of the industrial products company's stock worth $1,409,000 after acquiring an additional 482 shares during the period. Prosperity Financial Group Inc. boosted its stake in Caterpillar by 4.8% in the third quarter. Prosperity Financial Group Inc. now owns 1,890 shares of the industrial products company's stock valued at $739,000 after acquiring an additional 87 shares during the last quarter. Fisher Asset Management LLC grew its position in shares of Caterpillar by 2.3% during the 3rd quarter. Fisher Asset Management LLC now owns 8,952,632 shares of the industrial products company's stock valued at $3,501,554,000 after acquiring an additional 205,012 shares during the period. Finally, Daiwa Securities Group Inc. raised its holdings in shares of Caterpillar by 5.6% in the 3rd quarter. Daiwa Securities Group Inc. now owns 144,359 shares of the industrial products company's stock worth $56,461,000 after purchasing an additional 7,602 shares during the period. 70.98% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Caterpillar Price Performance

Caterpillar stock traded up $2.17 during mid-day trading on Tuesday, hitting $407.82. 1,796,577 shares of the company traded hands, compared to its average volume of 2,600,302. The stock has a fifty day moving average price of $389.05 and a 200-day moving average price of $356.75. The stock has a market cap of $196.90 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 18.91, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.96 and a beta of 1.10. Caterpillar Inc. has a one year low of $246.01 and a one year high of $418.50. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.33, a quick ratio of 0.86 and a current ratio of 1.40.

Caterpillar (NYSE:CAT - Get Free Report) last announced its earnings results on Wednesday, October 30th. The industrial products company reported $5.17 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $5.33 by ($0.16). Caterpillar had a return on equity of 59.09% and a net margin of 16.26%. The company had revenue of $16.11 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $16.37 billion. During the same quarter last year, the firm posted $5.52 earnings per share. The firm's revenue was down 4.2% on a year-over-year basis. On average, equities analysts predict that Caterpillar Inc. will post 21.67 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Caterpillar Announces Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, November 20th. Shareholders of record on Monday, October 21st were paid a $1.41 dividend. This represents a $5.64 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.38%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Monday, October 21st. Caterpillar's dividend payout ratio is currently 26.15%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several equities analysts have weighed in on CAT shares. Morgan Stanley lowered Caterpillar from an "equal weight" rating to an "underweight" rating and reduced their price objective for the company from $349.00 to $332.00 in a report on Monday, October 14th. Evercore ISI cut Caterpillar from an "in-line" rating to an "underperform" rating and boosted their price objective for the company from $321.00 to $365.00 in a research note on Wednesday, November 13th. Robert W. Baird increased their target price on shares of Caterpillar from $299.00 to $300.00 and gave the stock an "underperform" rating in a research report on Thursday, October 31st. Bank of America upped their price target on shares of Caterpillar from $376.00 to $434.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a research note on Monday, September 30th. Finally, UBS Group lifted their price objective on shares of Caterpillar from $285.00 to $295.00 and gave the company a "sell" rating in a research note on Monday, November 4th. Four equities research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, eight have assigned a hold rating and six have given a buy rating to the company's stock. According to MarketBeat, the company presently has a consensus rating of "Hold" and an average target price of $365.33.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other news, insider Lange Bob De sold 12,657 shares of the business's stock in a transaction dated Thursday, November 7th. The stock was sold at an average price of $410.25, for a total value of $5,192,534.25. Following the completion of the sale, the insider now owns 71,107 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $29,171,646.75. The trade was a 15.11 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this link. Also, insider Anthony D. Fassino sold 3,185 shares of the business's stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, August 30th. The shares were sold at an average price of $351.36, for a total value of $1,119,081.60. Following the completion of the sale, the insider now owns 33,442 shares of the company's stock, valued at $11,750,181.12. The trade was a 8.70 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last ninety days, insiders have sold 20,774 shares of company stock valued at $8,233,034. 0.29% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

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.