Teachers Retirement System of The State of Kentucky Sells 1,188 Shares of Caterpillar Inc. (NYSE:CAT)

Teachers Retirement System of The State of Kentucky lessened its holdings in shares of Caterpillar Inc. (NYSE:CAT) by 2.8% during the second quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm owned 40,948 shares of the industrial products company’s stock after selling 1,188 shares during the period. Teachers Retirement System of The State of Kentucky’s holdings in Caterpillar were worth $13,639,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds have also bought and sold shares of the business. Aldebaran Financial Inc. lifted its position in shares of Caterpillar by 14.3% in the 2nd quarter. Aldebaran Financial Inc. now owns 657 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $219,000 after purchasing an additional 82 shares during the period. 3Chopt Investment Partners LLC purchased a new stake in Caterpillar in the second quarter worth about $289,000. SPC Financial Inc. boosted its position in Caterpillar by 72.5% during the 2nd quarter. SPC Financial Inc. now owns 1,121 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $373,000 after acquiring an additional 471 shares in the last quarter. Ted Buchan & Co purchased a new position in shares of Caterpillar during the 2nd quarter worth approximately $837,000. Finally, Advisory Alpha LLC raised its position in shares of Caterpillar by 17.1% in the 2nd quarter. Advisory Alpha LLC now owns 4,081 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $1,360,000 after acquiring an additional 595 shares in the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 70.98% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several research firms recently weighed in on CAT. Evercore ISI dropped their price target on Caterpillar from $338.00 to $321.00 and set an “in-line” rating on the stock in a research report on Monday, August 19th. StockNews.com downgraded shares of Caterpillar from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Tuesday, September 24th. Bank of America lifted their price target on shares of Caterpillar from $376.00 to $434.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Monday. Barclays lifted their target price on shares of Caterpillar from $315.00 to $335.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a report on Wednesday, August 7th. Finally, Raymond James began coverage on Caterpillar in a research note on Friday, June 28th. They issued a “market perform” rating on the stock. Two research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, ten have issued a hold rating and seven have given a buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company presently has an average rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $339.94.

Insider Buying and Selling at Caterpillar

In other Caterpillar news, Director Gerald Johnson acquired 100 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, September 4th. The shares were purchased at an average price of $338.59 per share, for a total transaction of $33,859.00. Following the purchase, the director now directly owns 2,842 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $962,272.78. The acquisition was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available at this link. In other Caterpillar news, Director Gerald Johnson bought 100 shares of Caterpillar stock in a transaction on Wednesday, September 4th. The stock was acquired at an average cost 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 $962,272.78. The purchase was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at the SEC website. Also, insider Cheryl H. Johnson sold 2,975 shares of Caterpillar stock in a transaction 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 transaction, the insider now owns 15,615 shares in the company, valued at approximately $5,347,825.20. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold a total of 7,668 shares of company stock worth $2,665,760 in the last three months. 0.33% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Caterpillar Stock Up 0.3 %

CAT opened at $392.40 on Wednesday. Caterpillar Inc. has a twelve month low of $223.76 and a twelve month high of $397.22. The company has a quick ratio of 0.78, a current ratio of 1.28 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.39. The firm has a 50 day moving average price of $348.50 and a 200-day moving average price of $347.14. The stock has a market capitalization of $191.90 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 17.72, a PEG ratio of 1.73 and a beta of 1.10.

Caterpillar (NYSE:CAT) last released its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, August 6th. The industrial products company reported $5.99 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $5.53 by $0.46. The firm had revenue of $16.69 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $16.91 billion. Caterpillar had a return on equity of 59.88% and a net margin of 16.58%. The company’s revenue for the quarter was down 3.6% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period last year, the business posted $5.55 EPS. Equities research analysts forecast that Caterpillar Inc. will post 21.91 earnings per share for the current year.

Caterpillar declared that its Board of Directors has initiated a share buyback plan on Wednesday, June 12th that authorizes the company to buyback $20.00 billion in shares. This buyback authorization authorizes the industrial products company to purchase up to 12.7% of its stock through open market purchases. Stock buyback plans are often an indication that the company’s management believes its stock is undervalued.

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.