Romano Brothers AND Company Has $6.25 Million Stock Position in Caterpillar Inc. (NYSE:CAT)

Romano Brothers AND Company decreased its position in Caterpillar Inc. (NYSE:CAT) by 4.0% in the 4th quarter, HoldingsChannel reports. The institutional investor owned 17,224 shares of the industrial products company’s stock after selling 722 shares during the quarter. Romano Brothers AND Company’s holdings in Caterpillar were worth $6,248,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other hedge funds have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Cadinha & Co. LLC bought a new stake in Caterpillar in the fourth quarter worth approximately $11,084,000. Stillwater Capital Advisors LLC raised its holdings in Caterpillar by 1.5% during the fourth quarter. Stillwater Capital Advisors LLC now owns 41,315 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $14,988,000 after buying an additional 594 shares in the last quarter. Clarius Group LLC lifted its position in shares of Caterpillar by 6.4% in the fourth quarter. Clarius Group LLC now owns 4,778 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $1,733,000 after buying an additional 287 shares during the last quarter. J2 Capital Management Inc acquired a new position in shares of Caterpillar during the 4th quarter valued at about $572,000. Finally, Aaron Wealth Advisors LLC raised its stake in shares of Caterpillar by 6.6% in the 4th quarter. Aaron Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 6,096 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $2,212,000 after acquiring an additional 375 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 70.98% of the company’s stock.

Caterpillar Trading Up 1.4 %

Shares of Caterpillar stock opened at $386.03 on Friday. The firm has a market capitalization of $186.38 billion, a PE ratio of 17.90, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.72 and a beta of 1.13. The company’s fifty day moving average price is $380.09 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $367.03. Caterpillar Inc. has a 52-week low of $277.66 and a 52-week high of $418.50. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.33, a current ratio of 1.40 and a quick ratio of 0.86.

Caterpillar (NYSE:CAT) last released 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). Caterpillar had a net margin of 16.26% and a return on equity of 59.09%. The company had revenue of $16.11 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $16.37 billion. During the same period in the previous year, the firm posted $5.52 earnings per share. The firm’s revenue for the quarter was down 4.2% compared to the same quarter last year. On average, analysts expect that Caterpillar Inc. will post 21.68 EPS for the current year.

Caterpillar Announces Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, February 20th. Shareholders of record on Tuesday, January 21st will be paid a dividend of $1.41 per share. The ex-dividend date is Tuesday, January 21st. This represents a $5.64 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.46%. Caterpillar’s dividend payout ratio is currently 26.15%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of equities research analysts have issued reports on CAT shares. Jefferies Financial Group upped their target price on Caterpillar from $455.00 to $475.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Friday, December 6th. Citigroup lowered their target price on shares of Caterpillar from $460.00 to $420.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a research note on Tuesday, January 14th. StockNews.com lowered shares of Caterpillar from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Friday. Bank of America lifted their price objective on 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 Caterpillar from $285.00 to $295.00 and gave the company a “sell” rating in a research note on Monday, November 4th. Three equities research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, eight have given a hold rating and seven have given a buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, the company currently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $380.60.

Insider Buying and Selling at Caterpillar

In other news, insider Lange Bob De sold 12,657 shares of the stock in a transaction on Thursday, November 7th. The stock was sold at an average price of $410.25, for a total transaction of $5,192,534.25. Following the sale, the insider now owns 71,107 shares in the company, valued at approximately $29,171,646.75. This represents a 15.11 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this link. Also, CAO William E. Schaupp sold 968 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Friday, November 1st. The shares were 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 approximately $642,332.28. This trade represents a 36.47 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last three months, insiders sold 33,868 shares of company stock valued at $13,480,389. 0.29% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

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.