Primecap Management Co. CA Sells 137,271 Shares of Caterpillar Inc. (NYSE:CAT)

Primecap Management Co. CA decreased its position in Caterpillar Inc. (NYSE:CAT - Free Report) by 8.5% during the third quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the SEC. The firm owned 1,485,456 shares of the industrial products company's stock after selling 137,271 shares during the quarter. Primecap Management Co. CA owned approximately 0.31% of Caterpillar worth $580,992,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other institutional investors also recently bought and sold shares of the company. Acadian Asset Management LLC increased its position in Caterpillar by 17.2% in the first quarter. Acadian Asset Management LLC now owns 9,037 shares of the industrial products company's stock worth $3,308,000 after buying an additional 1,327 shares in the last quarter. EP Wealth Advisors LLC increased its position in Caterpillar by 17.9% in the first quarter. EP Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 10,466 shares of the industrial products company's stock worth $3,835,000 after buying an additional 1,588 shares in the last quarter. Capital International Investors increased its position in Caterpillar by 99.9% in the first quarter. Capital International Investors now owns 488,660 shares of the industrial products company's stock worth $179,060,000 after buying an additional 244,253 shares in the last quarter. Capital Research Global Investors increased its position in Caterpillar by 6.3% in the first quarter. Capital Research Global Investors now owns 2,020,100 shares of the industrial products company's stock worth $740,225,000 after buying an additional 119,326 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Canada Pension Plan Investment Board increased its position in Caterpillar by 306.9% in the first quarter. Canada Pension Plan Investment Board now owns 407,677 shares of the industrial products company's stock worth $149,385,000 after buying an additional 307,479 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors own 70.98% of the company's stock.

Caterpillar Price Performance

Caterpillar stock opened at $381.44 on Thursday. The stock has a market cap of $184.16 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 17.68, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.89 and a beta of 1.10. 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 1 year low of $241.81 and a 1 year high of $418.50. The firm has a 50-day moving average of $383.83 and a two-hundred day moving average of $355.03.

Caterpillar (NYSE:CAT - Get Free Report) last announced its quarterly 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). Caterpillar had a return on equity of 59.09% and a net margin of 16.26%. The business had revenue of $16.11 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $16.37 billion. During the same period in the previous year, the company posted $5.52 EPS. Caterpillar's revenue for the quarter was down 4.2% on a year-over-year basis. On average, research analysts forecast that Caterpillar Inc. will post 21.68 earnings per share for the current year.

Caterpillar Announces Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, November 20th. Stockholders 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 dividend yield of 1.48%. Caterpillar's payout ratio is presently 26.15%.

Insider Transactions at Caterpillar

In other news, Director Gerald Johnson bought 100 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, September 4th. The stock was bought at an average price of $338.59 per share, with a total value of $33,859.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the director now directly owns 2,842 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $962,272.78. The trade was a 3.65 % increase in their position. The purchase was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this link. Also, insider Anthony D. Fassino sold 3,185 shares of the company's stock in a transaction that occurred 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 transaction, the insider now owns 33,442 shares in the company, valued at $11,750,181.12. The trade was a 8.70 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last quarter, insiders sold 20,774 shares of company stock valued at $8,233,034. Company insiders own 0.29% of the company's stock.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

CAT has been the subject of several research analyst reports. StockNews.com cut Caterpillar from a "buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a research report on Tuesday, September 24th. Citigroup cut their target price on Caterpillar from $445.00 to $435.00 and set a "buy" rating for the company in a research report on Thursday, October 31st. JPMorgan Chase & Co. increased their target price on Caterpillar from $435.00 to $500.00 and gave the stock an "overweight" rating in a research report on Monday, October 14th. Evercore ISI cut Caterpillar from an "in-line" rating to an "underperform" rating and raised their price target for the company from $321.00 to $365.00 in a report on Wednesday, November 13th. Finally, Barclays upped their price objective on Caterpillar from $315.00 to $335.00 and gave the stock an "equal weight" rating in a report on Wednesday, August 7th. Four investment analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, eight have assigned a hold rating and six have issued a buy rating to the company's stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has an average rating of "Hold" and a consensus target price of $365.33.

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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