Legal & General Group Plc Decreases Stock Position in Caterpillar Inc. (NYSE:CAT)

Legal & General Group Plc cut its stake in Caterpillar Inc. (NYSE:CAT - Free Report) by 25.8% in the fourth quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm owned 2,591,815 shares of the industrial products company's stock after selling 900,218 shares during the quarter. Legal & General Group Plc owned approximately 0.54% of Caterpillar worth $940,207,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other institutional investors have also recently made changes to their positions in CAT. Norges Bank purchased a new position in Caterpillar during the fourth quarter worth approximately $2,184,364,000. Raymond James Financial Inc. purchased a new position in shares of Caterpillar during the 4th quarter valued at approximately $353,231,000. Proficio Capital Partners LLC grew its stake in Caterpillar by 50,072.7% in the 4th quarter. Proficio Capital Partners LLC now owns 804,770 shares of the industrial products company's stock valued at $291,938,000 after acquiring an additional 803,166 shares during the period. Amundi raised its position in Caterpillar by 17.3% during the fourth quarter. Amundi now owns 2,166,087 shares of the industrial products company's stock worth $782,109,000 after acquiring an additional 318,891 shares during the period. Finally, Vanguard Group Inc. lifted its holdings in Caterpillar by 0.6% during the fourth quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 46,809,540 shares of the industrial products company's stock valued at $16,980,629,000 after purchasing an additional 284,366 shares in the last quarter. 70.98% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of analysts have recently commented on CAT shares. Evercore ISI boosted their target price on shares of Caterpillar from $365.00 to $375.00 and gave the stock an "in-line" rating in a research note on Wednesday, February 19th. Citigroup cut their price objective on Caterpillar from $430.00 to $320.00 and set a "buy" rating for the company in a research note on Tuesday. DA Davidson lifted their price target on Caterpillar from $350.00 to $357.00 and gave the stock a "neutral" rating in a research note on Tuesday, February 4th. Bank of America reduced their price objective on Caterpillar from $452.00 to $414.00 and set a "buy" rating for the company in a research note on Friday, January 31st. Finally, Raymond James raised shares of Caterpillar from a "market perform" rating to an "outperform" rating in a research note on Monday, February 3rd. Two research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, eight have given a hold rating and nine have issued a buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, the company has an average rating of "Hold" and a consensus target price of $373.20.

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Insiders Place Their Bets

In related news, insider Jason Kaiser sold 2,425 shares of the business's stock in a transaction on Tuesday, February 18th. The stock was sold at an average price of $354.70, for a total value of $860,147.50. Following the sale, the insider now owns 6,275 shares in the company, valued at approximately $2,225,742.50. The trade was a 27.87 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. Also, CFO Andrew R. J. Bonfield sold 10,000 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction dated Thursday, January 16th. The shares were sold at an average price of $380.09, for a total value of $3,800,900.00. Following the transaction, the chief financial officer now owns 45,182 shares of the company's stock, valued at $17,173,226.38. This trade represents a 18.12 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. 0.29% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

Caterpillar Trading Up 1.4 %

Shares of Caterpillar stock traded up $4.19 during mid-day trading on Friday, hitting $293.35. The stock had a trading volume of 3,197,039 shares, compared to its average volume of 2,625,986. The firm has a market cap of $140.20 billion, a P/E ratio of 13.29, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.87 and a beta of 1.21. The company has a quick ratio of 0.89, a current ratio of 1.42 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.40. The firm has a 50-day moving average of $333.97 and a two-hundred day moving average of $367.17. Caterpillar Inc. has a 12-month low of $267.30 and a 12-month high of $418.50.

Caterpillar (NYSE:CAT - Get Free Report) last posted its earnings results on Thursday, January 30th. The industrial products company reported $5.14 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $4.97 by $0.17. Caterpillar had a return on equity of 58.18% and a net margin of 16.65%. Sell-side analysts forecast that Caterpillar Inc. will post 19.86 earnings per share for the current year.

Caterpillar Announces Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, May 20th. Shareholders of record on Monday, April 21st will be given a $1.41 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Monday, April 21st. This represents a $5.64 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.92%. Caterpillar's payout ratio is currently 25.56%.

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.