Caterpillar Inc. (NYSE:CAT) Position Boosted by Aptus Capital Advisors LLC

Aptus Capital Advisors LLC increased its stake in Caterpillar Inc. (NYSE:CAT) by 21.9% in the 3rd quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm owned 80,565 shares of the industrial products company’s stock after purchasing an additional 14,474 shares during the quarter. Aptus Capital Advisors LLC’s holdings in Caterpillar were worth $31,511,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other institutional investors also recently made changes to their positions in the stock. GSA Capital Partners LLP acquired a new stake in Caterpillar during the first quarter valued at approximately $433,000. Sei Investments Co. grew its holdings in shares of Caterpillar by 14.1% in the 1st quarter. Sei Investments Co. now owns 114,337 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $41,899,000 after acquiring an additional 14,121 shares during the last quarter. Headlands Technologies LLC grew its position in Caterpillar by 10.6% during the 1st quarter. Headlands Technologies LLC now owns 982 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $360,000 after purchasing an additional 94 shares in the last quarter. Koshinski Asset Management Inc. boosted its holdings in shares of Caterpillar by 13.0% during the first quarter. Koshinski Asset Management Inc. now owns 17,249 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $6,320,000 after purchasing an additional 1,981 shares during the period. Finally, Rogco LP increased its position in Caterpillar by 2.8% in the 1st quarter. Rogco LP now owns 3,083 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $1,130,000 after purchasing an additional 85 shares during the last quarter. 70.98% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Caterpillar Trading Down 0.7 %

CAT traded down $2.62 during trading on Tuesday, hitting $393.92. 334,686 shares of the stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 2,617,934. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.33, a current ratio of 1.40 and a quick ratio of 0.86. The firm has a 50-day moving average of $377.62 and a 200 day moving average of $353.01. The firm has a market capitalization of $190.19 billion, a P/E ratio of 18.40, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.94 and a beta of 1.10. Caterpillar Inc. has a 12-month low of $238.88 and a 12-month high of $418.50.

Caterpillar (NYSE:CAT) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, October 30th. The industrial products company reported $5.17 earnings per share for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $5.33 by ($0.16). The company had revenue of $16.11 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $16.37 billion. Caterpillar had a net margin of 16.26% and a return on equity of 59.09%. The firm’s quarterly revenue was down 4.2% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period last year, the business earned $5.52 EPS. Equities research analysts anticipate that Caterpillar Inc. will post 21.69 EPS for the current year.

Caterpillar Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, November 20th. Shareholders of record on Monday, October 21st will be issued a dividend of $1.41 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, October 21st. This represents a $5.64 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.43%. Caterpillar’s dividend payout ratio is currently 26.15%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of analysts have recently weighed in on the stock. StockNews.com cut shares of Caterpillar from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Tuesday, September 24th. Evercore ISI lowered their target price on shares of Caterpillar from $338.00 to $321.00 and set an “in-line” rating on the stock in a report on Monday, August 19th. Bank of America upped their price objective on shares of Caterpillar from $376.00 to $434.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Monday, September 30th. Barclays raised their price target on Caterpillar from $315.00 to $335.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a report on Wednesday, August 7th. Finally, UBS Group lifted their price target on Caterpillar from $285.00 to $295.00 and gave the company a “sell” rating in a report on Monday, November 4th. Three equities research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, nine have assigned a hold rating and six have issued a buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, Caterpillar presently has an average rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $362.40.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In related news, insider Lange Bob De sold 12,657 shares of the firm’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 approximately $29,171,646.75. This trade represents a 0.00 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this link. In other news, insider Lange Bob De sold 12,657 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Thursday, November 7th. The shares were sold at an average price of $410.25, for a total transaction of $5,192,534.25. Following the sale, the insider now directly owns 71,107 shares in the company, valued at $29,171,646.75. This trade represents a 0.00 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this hyperlink. Also, CAO William E. Schaupp sold 968 shares of the stock in a transaction on Friday, November 1st. The stock was sold at an average price of $380.98, for a total value of $368,788.64. Following the completion of the sale, the chief accounting officer now owns 1,686 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $642,332.28. The trade was a 0.00 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last ninety days, insiders have sold 23,749 shares of company stock worth $9,251,912. Company insiders own 0.29% of the company’s stock.

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.