Kentucky Retirement Systems Insurance Trust Fund Trims Stake in Caterpillar Inc. (NYSE:CAT)

Kentucky Retirement Systems Insurance Trust Fund cut its position in Caterpillar Inc. (NYSE:CAT - Free Report) by 9.0% in the 3rd quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the SEC. The fund owned 14,357 shares of the industrial products company's stock after selling 1,417 shares during the period. Kentucky Retirement Systems Insurance Trust Fund's holdings in Caterpillar were worth $5,615,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently made changes to their positions in CAT. Bbjs Financial Advisors LLC purchased a new position in shares of Caterpillar during the second quarter valued at approximately $28,000. Financial Connections Group Inc. purchased a new stake in Caterpillar during the 2nd quarter valued at $28,000. Capital Performance Advisors LLP purchased a new position in shares of Caterpillar in the 3rd quarter worth $36,000. Fairscale Capital LLC bought a new stake in shares of Caterpillar in the second quarter worth $36,000. Finally, POM Investment Strategies LLC increased its position in Caterpillar by 2,160.0% during the second quarter. POM Investment Strategies LLC now owns 113 shares of the industrial products company's stock valued at $38,000 after acquiring an additional 108 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors own 70.98% of the company's stock.

Caterpillar Price Performance

Shares of CAT traded down $3.29 during midday trading on Friday, hitting $384.07. 2,165,453 shares of the company traded hands, compared to its average volume of 2,613,751. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.33, a quick ratio of 0.86 and a current ratio of 1.40. The stock has a market cap of $185.43 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 17.81, a PEG ratio of 1.91 and a beta of 1.10. Caterpillar Inc. has a 52 week low of $241.81 and a 52 week high of $418.50. The firm has a 50 day moving average of $381.86 and a 200-day moving average of $354.07.

Caterpillar (NYSE:CAT - Get Free Report) last released its quarterly earnings data 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 return on equity of 59.09% and a net margin of 16.26%. The firm had revenue of $16.11 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $16.37 billion. During the same period in the previous year, the firm earned $5.52 EPS. The business's revenue was down 4.2% compared to the same quarter last year. On average, analysts forecast that Caterpillar Inc. will post 21.69 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Caterpillar Announces Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, November 20th. Stockholders of record on Monday, October 21st will be issued a $1.41 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, October 21st. This represents a $5.64 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.47%. Caterpillar's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 26.15%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of research firms have issued reports on CAT. Bank of America boosted their price target on Caterpillar from $376.00 to $434.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a research note on Monday, September 30th. Evercore ISI cut shares of Caterpillar from an "in-line" rating to an "underperform" rating and upped their target price for the company from $321.00 to $365.00 in a report on Wednesday. Citigroup cut their price objective on shares of Caterpillar from $445.00 to $435.00 and set a "buy" rating for the company in a research report on Thursday, October 31st. StockNews.com cut Caterpillar from a "buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a report on Tuesday, September 24th. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. upped their price target on Caterpillar from $435.00 to $500.00 and gave the stock an "overweight" rating in a research report on Monday, October 14th. Four investment analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, eight have assigned a hold rating and six have given a buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has a consensus rating of "Hold" and a consensus target price of $365.33.

Insider Activity at Caterpillar

In other news, insider Cheryl H. Johnson sold 2,975 shares of the stock in a transaction on Thursday, August 22nd. The shares were sold at an average price of $342.48, for a total value of $1,018,878.00. Following the sale, the insider now owns 15,615 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $5,347,825.20. This represents a 16.00 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this link. Also, insider Lange Bob De sold 12,657 shares of the 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 sale, the insider now directly owns 71,107 shares in the company, valued at $29,171,646.75. This trade represents a 15.11 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last quarter, insiders sold 23,749 shares of company stock valued at $9,251,912. Insiders own 0.29% 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.