Ellsworth Advisors LLC Cuts Stock Holdings in Caterpillar Inc. (NYSE:CAT)

Ellsworth Advisors LLC lowered its stake in Caterpillar Inc. (NYSE:CAT - Free Report) by 5.3% in the 4th quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the SEC. The fund owned 16,686 shares of the industrial products company's stock after selling 937 shares during the quarter. Caterpillar accounts for 1.6% of Ellsworth Advisors LLC's portfolio, making the stock its 14th biggest position. Ellsworth Advisors LLC's holdings in Caterpillar were worth $6,053,000 as of its most recent filing with the SEC.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently made changes to their positions in the company. Seven Eight Capital LP bought a new position in shares of Caterpillar in the 2nd quarter worth approximately $523,000. AE Wealth Management LLC raised its holdings in Caterpillar by 24.9% in the second quarter. AE Wealth Management LLC now owns 23,025 shares of the industrial products company's stock worth $7,670,000 after purchasing an additional 4,589 shares in the last quarter. Pacer Advisors Inc. boosted its holdings in shares of Caterpillar by 7.7% during the 2nd quarter. Pacer Advisors Inc. now owns 45,106 shares of the industrial products company's stock valued at $15,025,000 after buying an additional 3,211 shares in the last quarter. Sei Investments Co. grew its position in shares of Caterpillar by 3.4% in the 2nd quarter. Sei Investments Co. now owns 118,189 shares of the industrial products company's stock worth $39,372,000 after buying an additional 3,852 shares during the period. Finally, Ensign Peak Advisors Inc increased its stake in shares of Caterpillar by 1.8% in the 2nd quarter. Ensign Peak Advisors Inc now owns 208,187 shares of the industrial products company's stock worth $69,347,000 after acquiring an additional 3,780 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors own 70.98% of the company's stock.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other Caterpillar news, Director Daniel M. Dickinson sold 1,300 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, November 6th. The stock was sold at an average price of $418.00, for a total transaction of $543,400.00. Following the sale, the director now directly owns 4,976 shares of the company's stock, valued at $2,079,968. This trade represents a 20.71 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through the SEC website. Also, insider Cheryl H. Johnson sold 2,664 shares of the company's stock in a transaction dated Monday, November 4th. The stock was sold at an average price of $378.84, for a total value of $1,009,229.76. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider now directly owns 12,951 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $4,906,356.84. This trade represents a 17.06 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last three months, insiders have sold 33,868 shares of company stock valued at $13,480,389. 0.29% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

Caterpillar Stock Performance

Shares of CAT stock traded up $5.48 on Monday, reaching $386.03. The stock had a trading volume of 2,596,820 shares, compared to its average volume of 1,595,788. The stock has a market cap of $186.38 billion, a P/E ratio of 17.90, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.72 and a beta of 1.13. 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 Inc. has a 1 year low of $277.66 and a 1 year high of $418.50. The company has a 50 day simple moving average of $380.09 and a 200 day simple moving average of $367.29.

Caterpillar (NYSE:CAT - Get Free Report) last released its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, October 30th. The industrial products company reported $5.17 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing analysts' consensus estimates of $5.33 by ($0.16). Caterpillar had a net margin of 16.26% and a return on equity of 59.09%. The firm had revenue of $16.11 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $16.37 billion. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm earned $5.52 earnings per share. The company's revenue for the quarter was down 4.2% compared to the same quarter last year. Equities research analysts expect that Caterpillar Inc. will post 21.68 EPS for the current year.

Caterpillar Announces Dividend

The business also recently disclosed 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. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Tuesday, January 21st. This represents a $5.64 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.46%. Caterpillar's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 26.15%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several equities research analysts recently commented on CAT shares. StockNews.com lowered shares of Caterpillar from a "buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a research note on Friday. Truist Financial dropped their price target on Caterpillar from $471.00 to $455.00 and set a "buy" rating on the stock in a research report on Thursday. Jefferies Financial Group lifted their price objective on Caterpillar from $455.00 to $475.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a research note on Friday, December 6th. Robert W. Baird increased their target price on Caterpillar from $299.00 to $300.00 and gave the stock an "underperform" rating in a research note on Thursday, October 31st. Finally, UBS Group upped their price target on shares of Caterpillar from $285.00 to $295.00 and gave the stock a "sell" rating in a research note on Monday, November 4th. Three research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, eight have assigned a hold rating and seven have issued a buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has an average rating of "Hold" and a consensus target price of $380.60.

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.