Eagle Asset Management Inc. Sells 8,444 Shares of Caterpillar Inc. (NYSE:CAT)

Eagle Asset Management Inc. decreased its position in shares of Caterpillar Inc. (NYSE:CAT - Free Report) by 42.2% during the 3rd quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor owned 11,556 shares of the industrial products company's stock after selling 8,444 shares during the period. Eagle Asset Management Inc.'s holdings in Caterpillar were worth $4,546,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other institutional investors have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Bbjs Financial Advisors LLC acquired a new stake in Caterpillar during the second quarter valued at approximately $28,000. Financial Connections Group Inc. acquired a new stake in Caterpillar during the 2nd quarter worth about $28,000. Fairscale Capital LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Caterpillar during the second quarter worth approximately $36,000. Capital Performance Advisors LLP purchased a new position in Caterpillar during the third quarter valued at approximately $36,000. Finally, POM Investment Strategies LLC increased its stake in Caterpillar by 2,160.0% in the 2nd quarter. POM Investment Strategies LLC now owns 113 shares of the industrial products company's stock valued at $38,000 after buying an additional 108 shares during the period. 70.98% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Caterpillar Stock Performance

CAT stock traded up $8.16 on Monday, reaching $405.65. 4,370,131 shares of the company were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 2,603,713. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.33, a current ratio of 1.40 and a quick ratio of 0.86. Caterpillar Inc. has a 12 month low of $246.01 and a 12 month high of $418.50. The stock's fifty day moving average price is $386.81 and its 200 day moving average price is $356.00. The firm has a market capitalization of $195.85 billion, a PE ratio of 18.78, a PEG ratio of 1.96 and a beta of 1.10.

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

Caterpillar Dividend Announcement

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, November 20th. Investors of record on Monday, October 21st were given a $1.41 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Monday, October 21st. This represents a $5.64 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.39%. Caterpillar's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 26.15%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

CAT has been the topic of several research analyst reports. Citigroup lowered their price target on shares of Caterpillar from $445.00 to $435.00 and set a "buy" rating on the stock in a report on Thursday, October 31st. Morgan Stanley downgraded Caterpillar from an "equal weight" rating to an "underweight" rating and cut their price target for the stock from $349.00 to $332.00 in a research note on Monday, October 14th. Bank of America increased their price objective on Caterpillar from $376.00 to $434.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a report on Monday, September 30th. Truist Financial boosted their target price on shares of Caterpillar from $399.00 to $456.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a research report on Wednesday, October 9th. Finally, UBS Group raised their price target on shares of Caterpillar from $285.00 to $295.00 and gave the company a "sell" rating in a report on Monday, November 4th. Four investment analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, eight have issued a hold rating and six have issued a buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, the stock currently has an average rating of "Hold" and an average price target of $365.33.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other news, CAO William E. Schaupp sold 968 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, November 1st. The stock was sold at an average price of $380.98, for a total value of $368,788.64. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief accounting officer now directly owns 1,686 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $642,332.28. This represents a 36.47 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is accessible through the SEC website. Also, insider Anthony D. Fassino sold 3,185 shares of the business's stock in a transaction on Friday, August 30th. The shares were sold at an average price of $351.36, for a total transaction of $1,119,081.60. Following the completion of the sale, the insider now owns 33,442 shares in the company, valued at $11,750,181.12. This represents a 8.70 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold 20,774 shares of company stock worth $8,233,034 over the last 90 days. Corporate insiders own 0.29% of the company's stock.

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.