Caterpillar (NYSE:CAT) Shares Down 0.8% – Should You Sell?

Caterpillar Inc. (NYSE:CAT) shares fell 0.8% on Tuesday . The stock traded as low as $385.55 and last traded at $387.30. 485,207 shares traded hands during mid-day trading, a decline of 81% from the average session volume of 2,614,930 shares. The stock had previously closed at $390.61.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several brokerages recently issued reports on CAT. Barclays increased 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. Robert W. Baird increased their price target on Caterpillar from $299.00 to $300.00 and gave the company an “underperform” rating in a report on Thursday. Bank of America increased their price target on Caterpillar from $376.00 to $434.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Monday, September 30th. Citigroup increased their price target on Caterpillar from $380.00 to $445.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Wednesday, October 9th. Finally, Morgan Stanley downgraded Caterpillar from an “equal weight” rating to an “underweight” rating and lowered their target price for the company from $349.00 to $332.00 in a research note on Monday, October 14th. Three research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, nine have given a hold rating and seven have issued a buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, Caterpillar presently has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $358.19.

Caterpillar Stock Down 0.8 %

The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.39, a current ratio of 1.28 and a quick ratio of 0.78. The stock’s fifty day simple moving average is $371.10 and its 200-day simple moving average is $351.14. The stock has a market cap of $182.42 billion, a P/E ratio of 17.21, a PEG ratio of 1.85 and a beta of 1.10.

Caterpillar (NYSE:CAT) last issued its earnings results on Wednesday, October 30th. The industrial products company reported $5.17 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $5.33 by ($0.16). Caterpillar had a return on equity of 59.88% and a net margin of 16.58%. The business had revenue of $16.11 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $16.37 billion. During the same period in the prior year, the business earned $5.52 EPS. The business’s revenue was down 4.2% on a year-over-year basis. On average, research analysts anticipate that Caterpillar Inc. will post 21.91 earnings per share for the current year.

Caterpillar Announces Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, November 20th. Stockholders 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 dividend yield of 1.50%. Caterpillar’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 25.68%.

Insider Activity

In other Caterpillar news, Director Gerald Johnson purchased 100 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, September 4th. The shares were bought at an average price of $338.59 per share, with a total value of $33,859.00. Following the completion of the acquisition, the director now owns 2,842 shares in the company, valued at approximately $962,272.78. This represents a 0.00 % increase in their position. The acquisition was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through the SEC website. In other news, Director Gerald Johnson bought 100 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, September 4th. The shares were purchased at an average price of $338.59 per share, with a total value of $33,859.00. Following the completion of the acquisition, the director now directly owns 2,842 shares in the company, valued at approximately $962,272.78. This trade represents a 0.00 % increase in their ownership of the stock. The purchase was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through the SEC website. Also, insider Anthony D. Fassino sold 3,185 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, August 30th. The stock was sold at an average price of $351.36, for a total value of $1,119,081.60. Following the sale, the insider now directly owns 33,442 shares in the company, valued at approximately $11,750,181.12. The trade was a 0.00 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Corporate insiders own 0.29% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Several hedge funds have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the business. Legal & General Group Plc grew its position in Caterpillar by 2.0% in the second quarter. Legal & General Group Plc now owns 3,862,443 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $1,286,582,000 after buying an additional 75,973 shares during the last quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP grew its position in Caterpillar by 5.7% in the second quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP now owns 3,069,840 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $1,022,488,000 after buying an additional 165,358 shares during the last quarter. International Assets Investment Management LLC grew its position in Caterpillar by 39,534.0% during the 3rd quarter. International Assets Investment Management LLC now owns 2,136,667 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $8,356,930,000 after purchasing an additional 2,131,276 shares in the last quarter. Ameriprise Financial Inc. grew its position in Caterpillar by 10.4% during the 2nd quarter. Ameriprise Financial Inc. now owns 2,108,817 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $702,431,000 after purchasing an additional 198,123 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Capital Research Global Investors grew its position in Caterpillar by 6.3% during the 1st quarter. Capital Research Global Investors now owns 2,020,100 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $740,225,000 after purchasing an additional 119,326 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 70.98% of the company’s stock.

About Caterpillar

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.