Caterpillar Inc. (NYSE:CAT) Shares Sold by Banco Bilbao Vizcaya Argentaria S.A.

Banco Bilbao Vizcaya Argentaria S.A. cut its position in Caterpillar Inc. (NYSE:CAT - Free Report) by 20.0% in the fourth quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the SEC. The institutional investor owned 29,850 shares of the industrial products company's stock after selling 7,465 shares during the quarter. Banco Bilbao Vizcaya Argentaria S.A.'s holdings in Caterpillar were worth $10,882,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other institutional investors have also modified their holdings of the company. Principal Financial Group Inc. boosted its stake in Caterpillar by 0.7% in the third quarter. Principal Financial Group Inc. now owns 729,654 shares of the industrial products company's stock valued at $285,382,000 after acquiring an additional 5,371 shares in the last quarter. SOA Wealth Advisors LLC. lifted its holdings in shares of Caterpillar by 47.2% during the 3rd quarter. SOA Wealth Advisors LLC. now owns 156 shares of the industrial products company's stock valued at $61,000 after purchasing an additional 50 shares during the last quarter. Tudor Financial Inc. acquired a new stake in shares of Caterpillar in the 3rd quarter worth $854,000. Anchor Investment Management LLC grew its stake in Caterpillar by 2.9% during the 3rd quarter. Anchor Investment Management LLC now owns 13,317 shares of the industrial products company's stock worth $5,208,000 after buying an additional 376 shares during the last quarter. Finally, World Investment Advisors LLC boosted its holdings in Caterpillar by 26.6% in the third quarter. World Investment Advisors LLC now owns 4,012 shares of the industrial products company's stock worth $1,569,000 after acquiring an additional 843 shares in the last quarter. 70.98% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, insider Jason Kaiser sold 2,425 shares of the business's stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, February 18th. The shares were sold at an average price of $354.70, for a total transaction of $860,147.50. Following 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 ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Also, Director Gerald Johnson acquired 100 shares of the business's stock in a transaction 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 acquisition, the director now owns 3,053 shares in the company, valued at $1,116,085.21. The trade was a 3.39 % increase in their position. The disclosure for this purchase can be found here. 0.29% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Caterpillar Stock Performance

CAT stock traded up $0.51 during midday trading on Monday, hitting $306.96. 2,189,607 shares of the stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 2,620,106. The stock's fifty day simple moving average is $321.41 and its 200-day simple moving average is $360.15. The firm has a market cap of $146.71 billion, a P/E ratio of 13.91, a PEG ratio of 1.87 and a beta of 1.21. Caterpillar Inc. has a 1-year low of $267.30 and a 1-year high of $418.50. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.40, a current ratio of 1.42 and a quick ratio of 0.89.

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

Caterpillar Dividend Announcement

The firm 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. The ex-dividend date is Monday, April 21st. This represents a $5.64 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.84%. Caterpillar's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 25.56%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of analysts recently commented on the stock. Evercore ISI lifted their target price on shares of Caterpillar from $365.00 to $375.00 and gave the stock an "in-line" rating in a research note on Wednesday, February 19th. StockNews.com downgraded Caterpillar from a "buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a research report on Tuesday, February 25th. Raymond James raised Caterpillar from a "market perform" rating to an "outperform" rating in a research report on Monday, February 3rd. Bank of America cut their price objective on Caterpillar from $452.00 to $414.00 and set a "buy" rating on the stock in a report on Friday, January 31st. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. dropped their target price on Caterpillar from $490.00 to $380.00 and set an "overweight" rating on the stock in a research report on Monday, April 14th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, seven have given a hold rating and seven have given a buy rating to the company's stock. According to MarketBeat, the stock presently has an average rating of "Hold" and an average price target of $361.75.

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.