Caterpillar (NYSE:CAT) Insider Sells $14,928,254.40 in Stock

Caterpillar Inc. (NYSE:CAT) insider Anthony Fassino sold 16,283 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Monday, May 11th. The stock was sold at an average price of $916.80, for a total transaction of $14,928,254.40. Following the completion of the sale, the insider directly owned 46,041 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $42,210,388.80. The trade was a 26.13% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this link.

Caterpillar Stock Performance

CAT traded down $16.13 during midday trading on Tuesday, reaching $910.66. The company had a trading volume of 1,567,892 shares, compared to its average volume of 2,701,045. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.64, a quick ratio of 0.81 and a current ratio of 1.35. The stock has a market cap of $419.44 billion, a PE ratio of 45.32, a P/E/G ratio of 1.80 and a beta of 1.63. Caterpillar Inc. has a 12-month low of $336.24 and a 12-month high of $931.35. The business has a 50-day moving average price of $761.80 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $670.30.

Caterpillar (NYSE:CAT) last released its earnings results on Thursday, April 30th. The industrial products company reported $5.54 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $4.65 by $0.89. The firm had revenue of $17.42 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $16.53 billion. Caterpillar had a net margin of 13.33% and a return on equity of 48.21%. The company’s quarterly revenue was up 22.2% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the previous year, the company earned $4.25 earnings per share. On average, sell-side analysts expect that Caterpillar Inc. will post 24.21 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Caterpillar Announces Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, May 19th. Shareholders of record on Monday, April 20th will be paid a $1.51 dividend. This represents a $6.04 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 0.7%. The ex-dividend date is Monday, April 20th. Caterpillar’s payout ratio is presently 30.06%.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Caterpillar

Institutional investors have recently made changes to their positions in the stock. Cornerstone Advisory LLC lifted its stake in Caterpillar by 0.7% in the 1st quarter. Cornerstone Advisory LLC now owns 1,818 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $1,288,000 after purchasing an additional 12 shares in the last quarter. Advisory Resource Group lifted its stake in Caterpillar by 0.8% in the 4th quarter. Advisory Resource Group now owns 1,632 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $935,000 after purchasing an additional 13 shares in the last quarter. Sunbeam Capital Management LLC lifted its stake in Caterpillar by 1.1% in the 1st quarter. Sunbeam Capital Management LLC now owns 1,164 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $825,000 after purchasing an additional 13 shares in the last quarter. Brandywine Oak Private Wealth LLC lifted its stake in Caterpillar by 2.6% in the 1st quarter. Brandywine Oak Private Wealth LLC now owns 506 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $358,000 after purchasing an additional 13 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Sylvest Advisors LLC lifted its stake in Caterpillar by 3.6% in the 1st quarter. Sylvest Advisors LLC now owns 377 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $267,000 after purchasing an additional 13 shares in the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 70.98% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of research analysts have weighed in on the stock. Evercore reiterated an “outperform” rating and issued a $1,103.00 target price on shares of Caterpillar in a research note on Monday. Jefferies Financial Group boosted their target price on shares of Caterpillar from $900.00 to $1,045.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Friday, May 1st. Bank of America upped their price target on shares of Caterpillar from $930.00 to $989.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Friday, May 1st. Sanford C. Bernstein boosted their target price on shares of Caterpillar from $769.00 to $879.00 and gave the company a “market perform” rating in a report on Friday, May 1st. Finally, Oppenheimer set a $980.00 target price on Caterpillar and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research report on Friday, May 1st. Sixteen research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and nine have assigned a Hold rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $911.77.

About Caterpillar

Caterpillar Inc is a global manufacturer of construction and mining equipment, diesel and natural gas engines, industrial gas turbines and locomotives. The company’s product portfolio includes earthmoving machines such as excavators, bulldozers, wheel loaders and off‑highway trucks, as well as a range of power generation products including generator sets and power systems for industrial and commercial use. Caterpillar serves customers across heavy construction, mining, energy, transportation and related industries with both equipment and integrated technology solutions.

In addition to manufacturing, Caterpillar provides a broad range of aftermarket parts and support services, including maintenance, repair, remanufacturing and fleet management tools.