Caterpillar Inc. (NYSE:CAT) Short Interest Update

Caterpillar Inc. (NYSE:CAT - Get Free Report) saw a significant decline in short interest during the month of November. As of November 30th, there was short interest totalling 8,880,000 shares, a decline of 9.0% from the November 15th total of 9,760,000 shares. Approximately 1.8% of the company's stock are short sold. Based on an average daily trading volume, of 2,250,000 shares, the short-interest ratio is presently 3.9 days.

Caterpillar Trading Down 0.1 %

NYSE:CAT traded down $0.27 during trading hours on Friday, hitting $380.51. 2,035,063 shares of the stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 2,553,393. The company's 50 day moving average is $392.29 and its two-hundred day moving average is $360.62. Caterpillar has a twelve month low of $270.55 and a twelve month high of $418.50. The company has a quick ratio of 0.86, a current ratio of 1.40 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.33. The company has a market capitalization of $183.71 billion, a P/E ratio of 17.64, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.92 and a beta of 1.10.

Caterpillar (NYSE:CAT - Get Free Report) last posted its quarterly earnings data 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 firm had revenue of $16.11 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $16.37 billion. During the same period in the prior year, the company posted $5.52 EPS. The firm's quarterly revenue was down 4.2% compared to the same quarter last year. On average, sell-side analysts anticipate that Caterpillar will post 21.68 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Caterpillar Dividend Announcement

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, February 20th. Stockholders of record on Tuesday, January 21st will be paid a $1.41 dividend. This represents a $5.64 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.48%. The ex-dividend date is Tuesday, January 21st. Caterpillar's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 26.15%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several equities analysts recently issued reports on the company. Robert W. Baird boosted their price target on Caterpillar from $299.00 to $300.00 and gave the company an "underperform" rating in a research note on Thursday, October 31st. Truist Financial boosted their price target on Caterpillar from $399.00 to $456.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a research note on Wednesday, October 9th. Evercore ISI lowered Caterpillar from an "in-line" rating to an "underperform" rating and upped their price objective for the company from $321.00 to $365.00 in a research note on Wednesday, November 13th. Citigroup upped their price objective on Caterpillar from $435.00 to $460.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a research note on Monday, December 9th. Finally, Morgan Stanley lowered Caterpillar from an "equal weight" rating to an "underweight" rating and lowered their price objective for the company from $349.00 to $332.00 in a research note on Monday, October 14th. Four equities research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, seven have assigned a hold rating and eight have assigned a buy rating to the company's stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock has an average rating of "Hold" and a consensus price target of $374.69.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In related 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 transaction of $5,192,534.25. Following the completion of the transaction, 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 document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Also, insider Anthony D. Fassino sold 6,279 shares of the business's stock in a transaction dated Friday, November 29th. The stock was sold at an average price of $408.59, for a total value of $2,565,536.61. Following the transaction, the insider now directly owns 33,565 shares of the company's stock, valued at $13,714,323.35. This represents a 15.76 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold 23,868 shares of company stock valued at $9,679,489 over the last quarter. Insiders own 0.29% of the company's stock.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

A number of large investors have recently made changes to their positions in the stock. Geode Capital Management LLC lifted its stake in shares of Caterpillar by 0.7% in the 3rd quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 10,213,455 shares of the industrial products company's stock valued at $3,987,206,000 after purchasing an additional 67,148 shares during the period. Fisher Asset Management LLC lifted its stake in shares of Caterpillar by 2.3% in 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 purchasing an additional 205,012 shares during the period. Legal & General Group Plc lifted its stake in shares of Caterpillar by 2.0% in the 2nd quarter. Legal & General Group Plc now owns 3,862,443 shares of the industrial products company's stock valued at $1,286,582,000 after purchasing an additional 75,973 shares during the period. UBS AM a distinct business unit of UBS ASSET MANAGEMENT AMERICAS LLC lifted its stake in shares of Caterpillar by 1.8% in the 3rd quarter. UBS AM a distinct business unit of UBS ASSET MANAGEMENT AMERICAS LLC now owns 3,627,513 shares of the industrial products company's stock valued at $1,418,793,000 after purchasing an additional 64,452 shares during the period. Finally, Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. increased its position in shares of Caterpillar by 0.3% in the 3rd quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. now owns 3,227,378 shares of the industrial products company's stock valued at $1,262,290,000 after buying an additional 8,088 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 70.98% 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.

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