Versor Investments LP Sells 1,900 Shares of Caterpillar Inc. (NYSE:CAT)

Versor Investments LP trimmed its stake in Caterpillar Inc. (NYSE:CAT - Free Report) by 70.4% in the third quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor owned 800 shares of the industrial products company's stock after selling 1,900 shares during the quarter. Versor Investments LP's holdings in Caterpillar were worth $313,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC).

A number of other hedge funds have also made changes to their positions in the stock. Smallwood Wealth Investment Management LLC lifted its position in shares of Caterpillar by 2.6% in the third quarter. Smallwood Wealth Investment Management LLC now owns 1,037 shares of the industrial products company's stock worth $405,000 after purchasing an additional 26 shares in the last quarter. First Bank & Trust raised its position in Caterpillar by 4.0% during the third quarter. First Bank & Trust now owns 709 shares of the industrial products company's stock valued at $277,000 after acquiring an additional 27 shares in the last quarter. Washington Trust Bank raised its position in Caterpillar by 1.2% during the third quarter. Washington Trust Bank now owns 2,349 shares of the industrial products company's stock valued at $919,000 after acquiring an additional 27 shares in the last quarter. Pacifica Partners Inc. raised its position in Caterpillar by 1.6% during the third quarter. Pacifica Partners Inc. now owns 1,807 shares of the industrial products company's stock valued at $707,000 after acquiring an additional 28 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Vanguard Capital Wealth Advisors raised its position in Caterpillar by 0.8% during the third quarter. Vanguard Capital Wealth Advisors now owns 3,466 shares of the industrial products company's stock valued at $1,356,000 after acquiring an additional 28 shares in the last quarter. 70.98% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Caterpillar Stock Performance

Shares of Caterpillar stock traded down $3.29 during midday trading on Friday, hitting $384.07. The company had a trading volume of 2,165,453 shares, compared to its average volume of 2,613,751. The business's 50 day simple moving average is $381.86 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $354.07. The stock has a market cap of $185.43 billion, a PE ratio of 17.81, a P/E/G ratio of 1.91 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.

Caterpillar (NYSE:CAT - Get Free Report) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, October 30th. The industrial products company reported $5.17 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $5.33 by ($0.16). The company had revenue of $16.11 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $16.37 billion. Caterpillar had a return on equity of 59.09% and a net margin of 16.26%. The company's revenue was down 4.2% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the previous year, the business posted $5.52 EPS. As a group, equities analysts predict 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. Investors of record on Monday, October 21st will be paid a $1.41 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Monday, October 21st. This represents a $5.64 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.47%. Caterpillar's payout ratio is currently 26.15%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several brokerages recently weighed in on CAT. Robert W. Baird raised their price objective on shares of 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. raised their price objective on shares of Caterpillar from $435.00 to $500.00 and gave the company an "overweight" rating in a research report on Monday, October 14th. Citigroup cut their price objective on shares of Caterpillar from $445.00 to $435.00 and set a "buy" rating on the stock in a research report on Thursday, October 31st. StockNews.com downgraded Caterpillar from a "buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a report on Tuesday, September 24th. Finally, Morgan Stanley downgraded Caterpillar from an "equal weight" rating to an "underweight" rating and lowered their price target for the company from $349.00 to $332.00 in a report on Monday, October 14th. Four investment analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, eight have given a hold rating and six have given a buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, Caterpillar presently has an average rating of "Hold" and an average target price of $365.33.

Insider Activity at Caterpillar

In related news, insider Lange Bob De sold 12,657 shares of the business'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 sale, the insider now owns 71,107 shares of the company's stock, valued at $29,171,646.75. The trade was a 15.11 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this hyperlink. Also, insider Anthony D. Fassino sold 3,185 shares of the business's stock in a transaction on Friday, August 30th. The shares were sold at an average price of $351.36, for a total value of $1,119,081.60. Following the completion of the sale, the insider now directly owns 33,442 shares in the company, valued at approximately $11,750,181.12. This represents a 8.70 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold a total of 23,749 shares of company stock valued at $9,251,912 over the last quarter. 0.29% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

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.