Caterpillar Inc. (NYSE:CAT) Shares Sold by Appleton Partners Inc. MA

Appleton Partners Inc. MA cut its holdings in Caterpillar Inc. (NYSE:CAT) by 10.1% in the 3rd quarter, HoldingsChannel reports. The fund owned 1,641 shares of the industrial products company’s stock after selling 184 shares during the period. Appleton Partners Inc. MA’s holdings in Caterpillar were worth $642,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other large investors also recently made changes to their positions in CAT. Canada Pension Plan Investment Board increased its stake in Caterpillar by 306.9% in the first quarter. Canada Pension Plan Investment Board now owns 407,677 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $149,385,000 after purchasing an additional 307,479 shares during the last quarter. Altshuler Shaham Ltd grew its holdings in Caterpillar by 3,319.7% in the 2nd quarter. Altshuler Shaham Ltd now owns 275,011 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $91,606,000 after buying an additional 266,969 shares during the period. Swedbank AB acquired a new position in shares of Caterpillar during the 1st quarter valued at about $97,042,000. Capital International Investors lifted its holdings in shares of Caterpillar by 99.9% during the 1st quarter. Capital International Investors now owns 488,660 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $179,060,000 after acquiring an additional 244,253 shares during the period. Finally, National Bank of Canada FI boosted its position in shares of Caterpillar by 104.6% in the second quarter. National Bank of Canada FI now owns 391,428 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $128,768,000 after acquiring an additional 200,134 shares during the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 70.98% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several equities analysts recently commented on CAT shares. StockNews.com lowered shares of Caterpillar from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Tuesday, September 24th. Evercore ISI dropped their price objective on Caterpillar from $338.00 to $321.00 and set an “in-line” rating for the company in a report on Monday, August 19th. UBS Group lifted their target price on Caterpillar from $270.00 to $285.00 and gave the company a “sell” rating in a report on Wednesday, August 7th. Raymond James began coverage on Caterpillar in a research note on Friday, June 28th. They set a “market perform” rating for the company. Finally, Barclays lifted their price objective on Caterpillar from $315.00 to $335.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a research note on Wednesday, August 7th. Two analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, ten have issued a hold rating and seven have issued a buy rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock has an average rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $339.94.

Caterpillar Stock Down 0.8 %

Shares of NYSE:CAT opened at $391.09 on Friday. The company has a market capitalization of $191.26 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 17.66, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.73 and a beta of 1.10. The company has a 50 day moving average of $350.59 and a two-hundred day moving average of $347.78. Caterpillar Inc. has a 52-week low of $223.76 and a 52-week 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.

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

Caterpillar announced that its board has authorized a stock buyback program on Wednesday, June 12th that authorizes the company to repurchase $20.00 billion in shares. This repurchase authorization authorizes the industrial products company to reacquire up to 12.7% of its shares through open market purchases. Shares repurchase programs are often a sign that the company’s board believes its shares are undervalued.

Insider Activity

In related news, insider Cheryl H. Johnson sold 1,508 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, July 16th. The stock was sold at an average price of $350.00, for a total value of $527,800.00. Following the transaction, the insider now owns 18,515 shares in the company, valued at $6,480,250. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available at this hyperlink. In related news, Director Gerald Johnson purchased 100 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, September 4th. The stock was acquired at an average price of $338.59 per share, with a total value of $33,859.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the director now 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 can be accessed through this hyperlink. Also, insider Cheryl H. Johnson sold 1,508 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Tuesday, July 16th. The shares were sold at an average price of $350.00, for a total transaction of $527,800.00. Following the completion of the sale, the insider now directly owns 18,515 shares in the company, valued at $6,480,250. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold 7,668 shares of company stock worth $2,665,760 over the last ninety days. Corporate insiders own 0.33% of the company’s stock.

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.