Northstar Advisory Group LLC Reduces Stock Position in Caterpillar Inc. (NYSE:CAT)

Northstar Advisory Group LLC cut its stake in Caterpillar Inc. (NYSE:CAT) by 62.1% in the 4th quarter, Holdings Channel reports. The firm owned 955 shares of the industrial products company’s stock after selling 1,565 shares during the period. Northstar Advisory Group LLC’s holdings in Caterpillar were worth $282,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other institutional investors have also added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Atlas Capital Advisors LLC increased its stake in shares of Caterpillar by 272.4% in the 1st quarter. Atlas Capital Advisors LLC now owns 108 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $25,000 after acquiring an additional 79 shares in the last quarter. Kayne Anderson Rudnick Investment Management LLC increased its stake in shares of Caterpillar by 730.8% in the 1st quarter. Kayne Anderson Rudnick Investment Management LLC now owns 108 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $25,000 after acquiring an additional 95 shares in the last quarter. First Capital Advisors Group LLC. bought a new position in shares of Caterpillar in the 2nd quarter worth about $30,000. CGC Financial Services LLC bought a new position in shares of Caterpillar in the 2nd quarter worth about $31,000. Finally, Fortitude Family Office LLC bought a new position in shares of Caterpillar in the 4th quarter worth about $39,000. 70.98% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Insider Activity

In other Caterpillar news, insider Lange Bob De sold 21,194 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, February 7th. The stock was sold at an average price of $325.52, for a total value of $6,899,070.88. Following the sale, the insider now owns 61,092 shares in the company, valued at approximately $19,886,667.84. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available at the SEC website. In related news, insider Lange Bob De sold 21,194 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, February 7th. The stock was sold at an average price of $325.52, for a total transaction of $6,899,070.88. Following the completion of the sale, the insider now directly owns 61,092 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $19,886,667.84. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Also, CFO Andrew R. J. Bonfield sold 10,000 shares of Caterpillar stock in a transaction dated Friday, February 2nd. The shares were sold at an average price of $310.10, for a total value of $3,101,000.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief financial officer now directly owns 57,317 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $17,774,001.70. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold a total of 45,769 shares of company stock worth $14,509,306 over the last 90 days. 0.33% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

Caterpillar Stock Down 0.2 %

NYSE CAT opened at $363.96 on Thursday. The company has a quick ratio of 0.87, a current ratio of 1.35 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.25. The company has a fifty day moving average of $325.46 and a two-hundred day moving average of $287.19. The firm has a market capitalization of $181.76 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 18.11, a PEG ratio of 1.70 and a beta of 1.16. Caterpillar Inc. has a 52 week low of $204.04 and a 52 week high of $366.20.

Caterpillar (NYSE:CAT) last released its quarterly earnings data on Monday, February 5th. The industrial products company reported $5.23 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $4.76 by $0.47. Caterpillar had a net margin of 15.41% and a return on equity of 56.99%. The company had revenue of $17.07 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $17.06 billion. During the same period in the prior year, the firm earned $3.86 earnings per share. The firm’s revenue for the quarter was up 2.8% compared to the same quarter last year. On average, analysts predict that Caterpillar Inc. will post 21.25 earnings per share for the current year.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

CAT has been the subject of a number of analyst reports. Evercore ISI lowered shares of Caterpillar from an “outperform” rating to an “in-line” rating and raised their price objective for the company from $321.00 to $338.00 in a research note on Tuesday, February 20th. Sanford C. Bernstein raised their price objective on shares of Caterpillar from $216.00 to $245.00 and gave the company a “market perform” rating in a research note on Thursday, December 21st. Stifel Nicolaus raised their price target on shares of Caterpillar from $285.00 to $293.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Tuesday, December 19th. Morgan Stanley assumed coverage on shares of Caterpillar in a report on Monday, January 8th. They set an “equal weight” rating and a $270.00 price target on the stock. Finally, TD Cowen raised their price target on shares of Caterpillar from $300.00 to $338.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a report on Tuesday, February 6th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, nine have given a hold rating and nine have given a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat, the company presently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $297.89.

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.