Caterpillar Inc. (NYSE:CAT) Shares Sold by Teachers Retirement System of The State of Kentucky

Teachers Retirement System of The State of Kentucky lowered its stake in Caterpillar Inc. (NYSE:CAT - Free Report) by 9.2% in the 3rd quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 37,189 shares of the industrial products company's stock after selling 3,759 shares during the period. Teachers Retirement System of The State of Kentucky's holdings in Caterpillar were worth $14,545,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently added to or reduced their stakes in CAT. International Assets Investment Management LLC grew its position in Caterpillar by 39,534.0% in the third quarter. International Assets Investment Management LLC now owns 2,136,667 shares of the industrial products company's stock worth $8,356,930,000 after acquiring an additional 2,131,276 shares in the last quarter. Altshuler Shaham Ltd boosted its position in shares of Caterpillar by 3,319.7% during the second quarter. Altshuler Shaham Ltd now owns 275,011 shares of the industrial products company's stock valued at $91,606,000 after buying an additional 266,969 shares during the period. Zurich Insurance Group Ltd FI boosted its position in shares of Caterpillar by 4,018.6% during the third quarter. Zurich Insurance Group Ltd FI now owns 255,355 shares of the industrial products company's stock valued at $99,874,000 after buying an additional 249,155 shares during the period. Fisher Asset Management LLC boosted its position in shares of Caterpillar by 2.3% during the third quarter. Fisher Asset Management LLC now owns 8,952,632 shares of the industrial products company's stock valued at $3,501,554,000 after buying an additional 205,012 shares during the period. Finally, Caisse DE Depot ET Placement DU Quebec boosted its position in shares of Caterpillar by 34.4% during the third quarter. Caisse DE Depot ET Placement DU Quebec now owns 782,133 shares of the industrial products company's stock valued at $305,908,000 after buying an additional 200,210 shares during the period. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 70.98% of the company's stock.

Caterpillar Stock Down 2.1 %

NYSE:CAT traded down $8.19 during trading hours on Thursday, reaching $380.68. The company's stock had a trading volume of 1,804,286 shares, compared to its average volume of 2,555,545. The company has a market capitalization of $183.79 billion, a P/E ratio of 17.65, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.97 and a beta of 1.10. Caterpillar Inc. has a 12 month low of $259.28 and a 12 month high of $418.50. 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 50 day moving average price of $392.83 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $360.00.

Caterpillar (NYSE:CAT - Get Free Report) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, October 30th. The industrial products company reported $5.17 EPS for the quarter, missing analysts' consensus estimates of $5.33 by ($0.16). The business had revenue of $16.11 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $16.37 billion. Caterpillar had a return on equity of 59.09% and a net margin of 16.26%. The business's quarterly revenue was down 4.2% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period last year, the firm earned $5.52 EPS. Equities analysts predict that Caterpillar Inc. will post 21.67 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Caterpillar Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently declared 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. This represents a $5.64 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.48%. The ex-dividend date is Tuesday, January 21st. Caterpillar's payout ratio is presently 26.15%.

Insider Transactions at Caterpillar

In related news, insider Lange Bob De sold 12,657 shares of the company's stock in a transaction on Thursday, November 7th. The stock was sold at an average price of $410.25, for a total value of $5,192,534.25. Following the transaction, the insider now directly owns 71,107 shares of the company's stock, valued at $29,171,646.75. This represents a 15.11 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this hyperlink. Also, CAO William E. Schaupp sold 968 shares of the company's stock in a transaction on Friday, November 1st. The shares were sold at an average price of $380.98, for a total value of $368,788.64. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief accounting officer now directly owns 1,686 shares in the company, valued at approximately $642,332.28. The trade was a 36.47 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last three months, insiders have sold 23,868 shares of company stock valued at $9,679,489. Corporate insiders own 0.29% of the company's stock.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several research analysts have issued reports on the company. Evercore ISI lowered Caterpillar from an "in-line" rating to an "underperform" rating and boosted their target price for the company from $321.00 to $365.00 in a research report on Wednesday, November 13th. Morgan Stanley lowered Caterpillar from an "equal weight" rating to an "underweight" rating and dropped their target price for the company from $349.00 to $332.00 in a research report on Monday, October 14th. Robert W. Baird boosted their target price on Caterpillar from $299.00 to $300.00 and gave the company an "underperform" rating in a research report on Thursday, October 31st. JPMorgan Chase & Co. lifted their price target on shares of Caterpillar from $500.00 to $515.00 and gave the company an "overweight" rating in a research note on Monday. Finally, StockNews.com raised shares of Caterpillar from a "hold" rating to a "buy" rating in a research note on Tuesday. Four equities research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, seven have given a hold rating and eight have given a buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, Caterpillar currently has an average rating of "Hold" and an average target price of $374.69.

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.