Beech Hill Advisors Inc. Decreases Stake in Caterpillar Inc. (NYSE:CAT)

Beech Hill Advisors Inc. lessened its stake in shares of Caterpillar Inc. (NYSE:CAT) by 10.6% in the fourth quarter, HoldingsChannel.com reports. The firm owned 3,800 shares of the industrial products company’s stock after selling 450 shares during the quarter. Beech Hill Advisors Inc.’s holdings in Caterpillar were worth $1,378,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently made changes to their positions in the company. Fairscale Capital LLC purchased a new stake in Caterpillar during the 2nd quarter valued at $36,000. Capital Performance Advisors LLP purchased a new stake in shares of Caterpillar during the third quarter worth about $36,000. Kimelman & Baird LLC grew its stake in shares of Caterpillar by 42.9% in the third quarter. Kimelman & Baird LLC now owns 100 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $39,000 after purchasing an additional 30 shares during the last quarter. HWG Holdings LP purchased a new position in Caterpillar during the 2nd quarter valued at about $54,000. Finally, SOA Wealth Advisors LLC. raised its position in Caterpillar by 47.2% during the 3rd quarter. SOA Wealth Advisors LLC. now owns 156 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $61,000 after purchasing an additional 50 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors own 70.98% of the company’s stock.

Caterpillar Stock Up 0.1 %

Caterpillar stock traded up $0.42 during mid-day trading on Thursday, hitting $375.31. The company had a trading volume of 86,200 shares, compared to its average volume of 1,812,854. Caterpillar Inc. has a 12 month low of $276.94 and a 12 month high of $418.50. The company has a current ratio of 1.40, a quick ratio of 0.86 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.33. The stock’s 50 day moving average price is $380.79 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $366.26. The company has a market capitalization of $181.20 billion, a PE ratio of 17.40, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.72 and a beta of 1.13.

Caterpillar (NYSE:CAT) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, October 30th. The industrial products company reported $5.17 EPS for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $5.33 by ($0.16). The firm had revenue of $16.11 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $16.37 billion. Caterpillar had a net margin of 16.26% and a return on equity of 59.09%. The business’s revenue for the quarter was down 4.2% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period last year, the company posted $5.52 earnings per share. As a group, sell-side analysts anticipate that Caterpillar Inc. will post 21.68 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Caterpillar Announces Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, February 20th. Investors of record on Tuesday, January 21st will be issued a $1.41 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Tuesday, January 21st. This represents a $5.64 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.50%. Caterpillar’s payout ratio is currently 26.15%.

Insider Activity at Caterpillar

In other news, CAO William E. Schaupp sold 968 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated 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 $642,332.28. This trade represents a 36.47 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available through this link. Also, insider Cheryl H. Johnson sold 2,664 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, November 4th. The shares were sold at an average price of $378.84, for a total transaction of $1,009,229.76. Following the transaction, the insider now directly owns 12,951 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $4,906,356.84. The trade was a 17.06 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last three months, insiders have sold 23,868 shares of company stock valued at $9,679,489. 0.29% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several equities analysts have recently issued reports on CAT shares. Truist Financial reduced their target price on Caterpillar from $471.00 to $455.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a research note on Thursday. Robert W. Baird upped their price objective on shares of Caterpillar from $299.00 to $300.00 and gave the stock an “underperform” rating in a report on Thursday, October 31st. Bank of America lifted their target price on shares of Caterpillar from $376.00 to $434.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Monday, September 30th. StockNews.com lowered shares of Caterpillar from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Thursday, January 9th. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. upped their target price on Caterpillar from $500.00 to $515.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a report on Monday, December 9th. Three investment analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, eight have issued a hold rating and seven have given a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $380.60.

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.