Versor Investments LP Trims Stake in Caterpillar Inc. (NYSE:CAT)

Versor Investments LP lowered its stake in shares of Caterpillar Inc. (NYSE:CAT) by 70.4% during the 3rd quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm 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).

Other hedge funds and other institutional investors also recently modified their holdings of the company. Smallwood Wealth Investment Management LLC lifted its stake in shares of Caterpillar by 2.6% in the 3rd quarter. Smallwood Wealth Investment Management LLC now owns 1,037 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $405,000 after purchasing an additional 26 shares during the period. First Bank & Trust lifted its stake in shares of Caterpillar by 4.0% in the 3rd quarter. First Bank & Trust now owns 709 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $277,000 after purchasing an additional 27 shares during the period. Washington Trust Bank lifted its stake in shares of Caterpillar by 1.2% in the 3rd quarter. Washington Trust Bank now owns 2,349 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $919,000 after purchasing an additional 27 shares during the period. Pacifica Partners Inc. lifted its stake in shares of Caterpillar by 1.6% in the 3rd quarter. Pacifica Partners Inc. now owns 1,807 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $707,000 after purchasing an additional 28 shares during the period. Finally, Vanguard Capital Wealth Advisors lifted its stake in shares of Caterpillar by 0.8% in the 3rd quarter. Vanguard Capital Wealth Advisors now owns 3,466 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $1,356,000 after purchasing an additional 28 shares during the period. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 70.98% of the company’s stock.

Caterpillar Stock Down 0.8 %

Shares of NYSE:CAT opened at $384.08 on Friday. The firm’s 50 day moving average price is $380.76 and its 200 day moving average price is $353.83. The stock has a market cap of $185.43 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 17.81, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.91 and a beta of 1.10. Caterpillar Inc. has a fifty-two week low of $241.81 and a fifty-two week high of $418.50. The company has a quick ratio of 0.86, a current ratio of 1.40 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.33.

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

Caterpillar Announces Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, November 20th. Investors of record on Monday, October 21st will be issued a $1.41 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, October 21st. This represents a $5.64 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.47%. Caterpillar’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 26.15%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several equities analysts recently issued reports on the stock. Robert W. Baird boosted their target price on shares of Caterpillar from $299.00 to $300.00 and gave the company an “underperform” rating in a research note on Thursday, October 31st. Citigroup dropped their price objective on shares of Caterpillar from $445.00 to $435.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a report on Thursday, October 31st. Evercore ISI lowered shares of Caterpillar from an “in-line” rating to an “underperform” rating and increased their target price for the stock from $321.00 to $365.00 in a research note on Wednesday. Bank of America increased their target price 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. Finally, UBS Group increased their target price on shares of Caterpillar from $285.00 to $295.00 and gave the stock a “sell” rating in a research note on Monday, November 4th. Four equities research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, eight have assigned a hold rating and six have issued a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the company currently has an average rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $365.33.

Insider Activity at Caterpillar

In other Caterpillar news, CAO William E. Schaupp sold 968 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, November 1st. The shares were sold at an average price of $380.98, for a total transaction of $368,788.64. Following the sale, the chief accounting officer now owns 1,686 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $642,332.28. This trade represents a 36.47 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this link. Also, insider Cheryl H. Johnson sold 2,975 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, August 22nd. The stock was sold at an average price of $342.48, for a total transaction of $1,018,878.00. Following the sale, the insider now directly owns 15,615 shares in the company, valued at approximately $5,347,825.20. The trade was a 16.00 % 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 90 days. 0.29% of the stock is owned by corporate 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.