Caterpillar Inc. (NYSE:CAT) Short Interest Down 10.3% in October

Caterpillar Inc. (NYSE:CAT) was the target of a significant drop in short interest in October. As of October 31st, there was short interest totalling 10,590,000 shares, a drop of 10.3% from the October 15th total of 11,810,000 shares. Approximately 2.2% of the company’s stock are sold short. Based on an average trading volume of 2,340,000 shares, the short-interest ratio is presently 4.5 days.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of research analysts have recently commented on the stock. StockNews.com downgraded shares of Caterpillar from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Tuesday, September 24th. UBS Group lifted their price target on shares of Caterpillar from $285.00 to $295.00 and gave the stock a “sell” rating in a research note on Monday, November 4th. Evercore ISI cut shares of Caterpillar from an “in-line” rating to an “underperform” rating and upped their price target for the company from $321.00 to $365.00 in a report on Wednesday, November 13th. Morgan Stanley lowered shares of Caterpillar from an “equal weight” rating to an “underweight” rating and decreased their price target for the company from $349.00 to $332.00 in a report on Monday, October 14th. Finally, Robert W. Baird raised their target price on Caterpillar from $299.00 to $300.00 and gave the company an “underperform” rating in a research note on Thursday, October 31st. Four research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, eight have issued a hold rating and six have issued a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the company has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $365.33.

Caterpillar Stock Down 0.6 %

Caterpillar stock traded down $2.13 during mid-day trading on Tuesday, hitting $382.33. The company’s stock had a trading volume of 1,772,256 shares, compared to its average volume of 2,605,664. 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 has a 52-week low of $241.81 and a 52-week high of $418.50. The firm’s 50 day moving average is $382.87 and its 200 day moving average is $354.71. The company has a market cap of $184.59 billion, a PE ratio of 17.83, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.90 and a beta of 1.10.

Caterpillar (NYSE:CAT) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, October 30th. The industrial products company reported $5.17 EPS for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $5.33 by ($0.16). Caterpillar had a return on equity of 59.09% and a net margin of 16.26%. The business had revenue of $16.11 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $16.37 billion. During the same quarter last year, the firm earned $5.52 earnings per share. The firm’s quarterly revenue was down 4.2% compared to the same quarter last year. On average, analysts anticipate that Caterpillar will post 21.68 earnings per share for the current year.

Caterpillar Announces Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, November 20th. Investors of record on Monday, October 21st will be paid a $1.41 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, October 21st. This represents a $5.64 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.48%. Caterpillar’s payout ratio is currently 26.15%.

Insider Activity

In related news, insider Anthony D. Fassino sold 3,185 shares of Caterpillar stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, August 30th. The stock was sold at an average price of $351.36, for a total value of $1,119,081.60. Following the sale, the insider now directly owns 33,442 shares in the company, valued at $11,750,181.12. The trade was a 8.70 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this link. Also, Director Gerald Johnson purchased 100 shares of Caterpillar stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, September 4th. The shares were bought 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 in the company, valued at approximately $962,272.78. This trade represents a 3.65 % increase in their position. The disclosure for this purchase can be found here. Over the last three months, insiders have sold 23,749 shares of company stock worth $9,251,912. Corporate insiders own 0.29% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Trading of Caterpillar

A number of large investors have recently bought and sold shares of the stock. Bbjs Financial Advisors LLC bought a new stake in shares of Caterpillar during the second quarter worth $28,000. Financial Connections Group Inc. acquired a new stake in Caterpillar in the 2nd quarter valued at about $28,000. Fairscale Capital LLC acquired a new position in shares of Caterpillar during the second quarter worth approximately $36,000. Capital Performance Advisors LLP acquired a new stake in shares of Caterpillar in the third quarter valued at approximately $36,000. Finally, POM Investment Strategies LLC raised its position in Caterpillar by 2,160.0% in the 2nd quarter. POM Investment Strategies LLC now owns 113 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $38,000 after purchasing an additional 108 shares during the last quarter. 70.98% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Caterpillar Company 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.