Caterpillar Inc. (NYSE:CAT) Stake Lowered by State of New Jersey Common Pension Fund D

State of New Jersey Common Pension Fund D decreased its holdings in shares of Caterpillar Inc. (NYSE:CAT - Free Report) by 1.5% during the 4th quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The fund owned 178,571 shares of the industrial products company's stock after selling 2,768 shares during the quarter. State of New Jersey Common Pension Fund D's holdings in Caterpillar were worth $64,778,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other hedge funds have also made changes to their positions in CAT. Nordea Investment Management AB boosted its holdings in Caterpillar by 1.6% in the fourth quarter. Nordea Investment Management AB now owns 635,750 shares of the industrial products company's stock valued at $231,686,000 after acquiring an additional 10,212 shares during the last quarter. West Wealth Group LLC acquired a new position in Caterpillar in the fourth quarter valued at $230,000. Citizens Financial Group Inc. RI boosted its holdings in Caterpillar by 43.0% in the third quarter. Citizens Financial Group Inc. RI now owns 13,902 shares of the industrial products company's stock valued at $5,437,000 after acquiring an additional 4,181 shares during the last quarter. Cadinha & Co. LLC purchased a new position in Caterpillar in the fourth quarter valued at about $11,084,000. Finally, Atomi Financial Group Inc. raised its position in Caterpillar by 3.9% in the fourth quarter. Atomi Financial Group Inc. now owns 23,193 shares of the industrial products company's stock valued at $8,414,000 after purchasing an additional 871 shares during the period. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 70.98% of the company's stock.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

CAT has been the topic of several research reports. UBS Group raised Caterpillar from a "sell" rating to a "neutral" rating and raised their price objective for the company from $355.00 to $385.00 in a research report on Monday, February 3rd. StockNews.com raised Caterpillar from a "hold" rating to a "buy" rating in a research report on Tuesday, February 11th. Jefferies Financial Group raised their price objective on Caterpillar from $455.00 to $475.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a research report on Friday, December 6th. Bank of America cut their price objective on Caterpillar from $452.00 to $414.00 and set a "buy" rating on the stock in a research report on Friday, January 31st. Finally, Citigroup lifted their target price on Caterpillar from $420.00 to $430.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a research report on Friday, January 31st. Two analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, eight have issued a hold rating and eight have given a buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the company currently has an average rating of "Hold" and a consensus target price of $383.80.

Insider Transactions at Caterpillar

In related news, insider Anthony D. Fassino sold 6,279 shares of the business's stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, November 29th. The stock was sold at an average price of $408.59, for a total transaction of $2,565,536.61. Following the sale, the insider now owns 33,565 shares of the company's stock, valued at $13,714,323.35. The trade was a 15.76 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at the SEC website. Also, CFO Andrew R. J. Bonfield sold 10,000 shares of the company's stock in a transaction on 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 completion of the transaction, the chief financial officer now directly owns 45,182 shares in the company, valued at $17,173,226.38. This represents a 18.12 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last three months, insiders sold 18,704 shares of company stock worth $7,226,584. Company insiders own 0.29% of the company's stock.

Caterpillar Stock Down 1.2 %

NYSE:CAT traded down $4.16 during mid-day trading on Thursday, reaching $348.84. The stock had a trading volume of 2,171,572 shares, compared to its average volume of 2,392,472. The company has a market capitalization of $166.72 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 15.81, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.89 and a beta of 1.12. Caterpillar Inc. has a 1-year low of $307.05 and a 1-year high of $418.50. The stock's 50 day simple moving average is $370.18 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $372.40. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.40, a current ratio of 1.42 and a quick ratio of 0.89.

Caterpillar (NYSE:CAT - Get Free Report) last issued its earnings results on Thursday, January 30th. The industrial products company reported $5.14 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts' consensus estimates of $4.97 by $0.17. Caterpillar had a return on equity of 58.18% and a net margin of 16.65%. Equities analysts anticipate that Caterpillar Inc. will post 19.86 EPS for the current year.

Caterpillar Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, February 20th. Stockholders of record on Tuesday, January 21st will be given a dividend of $1.41 per share. The ex-dividend date is Tuesday, January 21st. This represents a $5.64 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.62%. Caterpillar's dividend payout ratio is presently 25.56%.

Caterpillar Company 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.