Sentry Investment Management LLC Trims Holdings in Caterpillar Inc. (NYSE:CAT)

Sentry Investment Management LLC reduced its holdings in shares of Caterpillar Inc. (NYSE:CAT) by 14.0% in the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm owned 2,036 shares of the industrial products company’s stock after selling 331 shares during the period. Sentry Investment Management LLC’s holdings in Caterpillar were worth $739,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other hedge funds have also bought and sold shares of the company. FSM Wealth Advisors LLC grew its holdings in Caterpillar by 3.8% during the 4th quarter. FSM Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 688 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $262,000 after buying an additional 25 shares in the last quarter. Allen Capital Group LLC boosted its position in shares of Caterpillar by 0.6% during the 4th quarter. Allen Capital Group LLC now owns 4,247 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $1,541,000 after acquiring an additional 26 shares during the last quarter. Wagner Wealth Management LLC grew its holdings in shares of Caterpillar by 4.0% in the fourth quarter. Wagner Wealth Management LLC now owns 668 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $242,000 after purchasing an additional 26 shares in the last quarter. Washington Trust Bank increased its position in Caterpillar by 1.2% in the third quarter. Washington Trust Bank now owns 2,349 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $919,000 after purchasing an additional 27 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Channel Wealth LLC raised its stake in Caterpillar by 1.9% during the fourth quarter. Channel Wealth LLC now owns 1,468 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $533,000 after purchasing an additional 27 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors own 70.98% of the company’s stock.

Insider Activity

In other news, insider Jason Kaiser sold 2,425 shares of Caterpillar stock in a transaction on Tuesday, February 18th. The stock was sold at an average price of $354.70, for a total value of $860,147.50. Following the transaction, the insider now directly owns 6,275 shares in the company, valued at approximately $2,225,742.50. This trade represents a 27.87 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. Also, insider Anthony D. Fassino sold 6,279 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Friday, November 29th. The stock was sold at an average price of $408.59, for a total value of $2,565,536.61. Following the sale, the insider now owns 33,565 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $13,714,323.35. This trade represents a 15.76 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last quarter, insiders sold 18,704 shares of company stock worth $7,226,584. 0.29% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

Caterpillar Stock Performance

Shares of NYSE:CAT opened at $338.65 on Tuesday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.40, a quick ratio of 0.89 and a current ratio of 1.42. The firm has a market cap of $161.85 billion, a PE ratio of 15.34, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.87 and a beta of 1.12. The firm’s 50 day simple moving average is $368.73 and its 200-day simple moving average is $373.05. Caterpillar Inc. has a one year low of $307.05 and a one year high of $418.50.

Caterpillar (NYSE:CAT) last issued its earnings results on Thursday, January 30th. The industrial products company reported $5.14 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $4.97 by $0.17. Caterpillar had a return on equity of 58.18% and a net margin of 16.65%. As a group, equities analysts predict that Caterpillar Inc. will post 19.86 EPS for the current year.

Caterpillar Announces Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, February 20th. Shareholders of record on Tuesday, January 21st were issued a dividend of $1.41 per share. This represents a $5.64 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.67%. The ex-dividend date was Tuesday, January 21st. Caterpillar’s payout ratio is 25.56%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of analysts have recently weighed in on CAT shares. Truist Financial reduced their target price on shares of Caterpillar from $455.00 to $438.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a report on Monday, February 3rd. StockNews.com upgraded Caterpillar from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a research report on Tuesday, February 11th. Evercore ISI lifted their target price on Caterpillar from $365.00 to $375.00 and gave the stock an “in-line” rating in a report on Wednesday, February 19th. Morgan Stanley decreased their price target on Caterpillar from $330.00 to $300.00 and set an “underweight” rating on the stock in a report on Friday, January 31st. Finally, DA Davidson lifted their price objective on shares of Caterpillar from $350.00 to $357.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research note on Tuesday, February 4th. Two investment analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, seven have given a hold rating and ten have given a buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, Caterpillar presently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $383.80.

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.