Metis Global Partners LLC Sells 2,035 Shares of Caterpillar Inc. (NYSE:CAT)

Metis Global Partners LLC lowered its holdings in Caterpillar Inc. (NYSE:CAT) by 9.6% during the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm owned 19,119 shares of the industrial products company’s stock after selling 2,035 shares during the quarter. Metis Global Partners LLC’s holdings in Caterpillar were worth $5,653,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other hedge funds have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. International Assets Investment Management LLC increased its position in shares of Caterpillar by 28,603.5% during the 4th quarter. International Assets Investment Management LLC now owns 1,494,018 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $4,417,360,000 after purchasing an additional 1,488,813 shares in the last quarter. Winslow Capital Management LLC raised its stake in shares of Caterpillar by 2,265.3% in the third quarter. Winslow Capital Management LLC now owns 1,117,830 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $305,168,000 after acquiring an additional 1,070,570 shares during the last quarter. FMR LLC boosted its holdings in shares of Caterpillar by 14.9% in the 3rd quarter. FMR LLC now owns 6,038,207 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $1,648,431,000 after acquiring an additional 781,111 shares in the last quarter. Bank Julius Baer & Co. Ltd Zurich grew its position in Caterpillar by 5,293.1% during the 4th quarter. Bank Julius Baer & Co. Ltd Zurich now owns 482,360 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $142,620,000 after acquiring an additional 473,416 shares during the last quarter. Finally, J.P. Morgan Private Wealth Advisors LLC acquired a new stake in Caterpillar during the 3rd quarter valued at $101,872,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 70.98% of the company’s stock.

Caterpillar Stock Up 0.4 %

CAT traded up $1.31 during trading on Friday, reaching $336.75. 1,977,087 shares of the stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 2,750,444. The stock has a market cap of $164.69 billion, a P/E ratio of 15.20, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.44 and a beta of 1.19. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.41, a quick ratio of 0.83 and a current ratio of 1.35. The stock’s 50 day moving average price is $351.89 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $303.64. Caterpillar Inc. has a twelve month low of $205.60 and a twelve month high of $382.01.

Caterpillar (NYSE:CAT) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, April 25th. The industrial products company reported $5.60 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $5.12 by $0.48. Caterpillar had a return on equity of 58.61% and a net margin of 16.79%. The firm had revenue of $15.80 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $16.07 billion. Equities analysts expect that Caterpillar Inc. will post 21.79 EPS for the current year.

Caterpillar Announces Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, May 20th. Stockholders of record on Monday, April 22nd will be given a $1.30 dividend. This represents a $5.20 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.54%. The ex-dividend date is Friday, April 19th. Caterpillar’s payout ratio is 23.48%.

Insider Transactions at Caterpillar

In other news, Director David Maclennan acquired 350 shares of the stock in a transaction on Friday, February 23rd. The shares were purchased at an average price of $323.37 per share, for a total transaction of $113,179.50. Following the transaction, the director now directly owns 5,238 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $1,693,812.06. The acquisition was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available through the SEC website. In other Caterpillar news, insider Lange Bob De sold 21,194 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Wednesday, February 7th. The stock was sold at an average price of $325.52, for a total transaction of $6,899,070.88. Following the transaction, the insider now owns 61,092 shares in the company, valued at approximately $19,886,667.84. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available through this hyperlink. Also, Director David Maclennan bought 350 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Friday, February 23rd. The shares were bought at an average price of $323.37 per share, with a total value of $113,179.50. Following the completion of the transaction, the director now owns 5,238 shares in the company, valued at approximately $1,693,812.06. The disclosure for this purchase can be found here. 0.33% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of brokerages recently weighed in on CAT. JPMorgan Chase & Co. raised their price target on shares of Caterpillar from $385.00 to $435.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a report on Tuesday, April 16th. Robert W. Baird boosted their target price on Caterpillar from $210.00 to $257.00 and gave the stock an “underperform” rating in a research report on Tuesday, February 6th. The Goldman Sachs Group upped their price target on Caterpillar from $357.00 to $408.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Tuesday, April 16th. HSBC lifted their price target on shares of Caterpillar from $330.00 to $360.00 and gave the stock a “hold” rating in a research report on Tuesday, April 30th. Finally, Evercore ISI downgraded Caterpillar from an “outperform” rating to an “in-line” rating and upped their price objective for the company from $321.00 to $338.00 in a report on Tuesday, February 20th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, ten have given a hold rating and eight have given a buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, Caterpillar currently has an average rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $323.35.

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.