Caterpillar Inc. (NYSE:CAT) Shares Sold by Pinebridge Investments L.P.

Pinebridge Investments L.P. lowered its position in Caterpillar Inc. (NYSE:CAT - Free Report) by 84.9% during the fourth quarter, according to its most recent filing with the SEC. The firm owned 23,026 shares of the industrial products company's stock after selling 129,865 shares during the period. Pinebridge Investments L.P.'s holdings in Caterpillar were worth $8,353,000 as of its most recent filing with the SEC.

Other institutional investors have also bought and sold shares of the company. Alta Advisers Ltd raised its holdings in shares of Caterpillar by 13.6% in the 4th quarter. Alta Advisers Ltd now owns 1,591 shares of the industrial products company's stock worth $577,000 after acquiring an additional 191 shares during the last quarter. Harvest Investment Services LLC purchased a new position in Caterpillar in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $767,000. Fayez Sarofim & Co increased its holdings in Caterpillar by 8.4% in the 4th quarter. Fayez Sarofim & Co now owns 60,499 shares of the industrial products company's stock worth $21,947,000 after acquiring an additional 4,697 shares during the last quarter. Van Lanschot Kempen Investment Management N.V. purchased a new stake in shares of Caterpillar during the 4th quarter valued at approximately $18,353,000. Finally, Wealth Dimensions Group Ltd. grew its position in shares of Caterpillar by 20.3% in the fourth quarter. Wealth Dimensions Group Ltd. now owns 941 shares of the industrial products company's stock valued at $341,000 after purchasing an additional 159 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors own 70.98% of the company's stock.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of analysts recently weighed in on CAT shares. Wedbush upgraded Caterpillar to an "outperform" rating in a research report on Monday, February 3rd. UBS Group raised Caterpillar from a "sell" rating to a "neutral" rating and raised their price target for the stock from $355.00 to $385.00 in a research note 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 research report on Friday, January 31st. Raymond James raised shares of Caterpillar from a "market perform" rating to an "outperform" rating in a research report on Monday, February 3rd. Finally, StockNews.com lowered shares of Caterpillar from a "buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a report on Tuesday, February 25th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, seven have assigned a hold rating and seven have issued a buy rating to the company's stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock currently has an average rating of "Hold" and a consensus price target of $361.75.

Insider Activity

In other 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 $2,225,742.50. The trade was a 27.87 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available through this link. Also, Director Gerald Johnson acquired 100 shares of Caterpillar stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, February 4th. The stock was purchased at an average price of $365.57 per share, with a total value of $36,557.00. Following the transaction, the director now owns 3,053 shares of the company's stock, valued at $1,116,085.21. This trade represents a 3.39 % increase in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this purchase can be found here. Corporate insiders own 0.29% of the company's stock.

Caterpillar Trading Up 0.2 %

Caterpillar stock traded up $0.51 during midday trading on Monday, hitting $306.96. 2,189,607 shares of the stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 2,620,106. The stock has a market capitalization of $146.71 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 13.91, a PEG ratio of 1.87 and a beta of 1.21. Caterpillar Inc. has a fifty-two week low of $267.30 and a fifty-two week high of $418.50. The company has a current ratio of 1.42, a quick ratio of 0.89 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.40. The stock's 50-day simple moving average is $321.41 and its 200 day simple moving average is $360.15.

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

Caterpillar Announces Dividend

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