Caterpillar Inc. (NYSE:CAT) Shares Bought by Citizens Financial Group Inc. RI

Citizens Financial Group Inc. RI lifted its holdings in shares of Caterpillar Inc. (NYSE:CAT) by 43.0% in the 3rd quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the SEC. The firm owned 13,902 shares of the industrial products company’s stock after buying an additional 4,181 shares during the period. Citizens Financial Group Inc. RI’s holdings in Caterpillar were worth $5,437,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other institutional investors have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in CAT. Bbjs Financial Advisors LLC acquired a new position in Caterpillar during the second quarter worth $28,000. Financial Connections Group Inc. purchased a new position in shares of Caterpillar in the second quarter valued at $28,000. Capital Performance Advisors LLP acquired a new position in shares of Caterpillar during the 3rd quarter worth $36,000. Fairscale Capital LLC acquired a new stake in Caterpillar in the 2nd quarter valued at about $36,000. Finally, POM Investment Strategies LLC increased its holdings in Caterpillar by 2,160.0% during the 2nd quarter. POM Investment Strategies LLC now owns 113 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $38,000 after acquiring an additional 108 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 70.98% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

CAT has been the subject of several research reports. StockNews.com downgraded Caterpillar from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Tuesday, September 24th. Morgan Stanley downgraded shares of Caterpillar from an “equal weight” rating to an “underweight” rating and reduced their price objective for the company from $349.00 to $332.00 in a research note on Monday, October 14th. Bank of America lifted their target price on shares of Caterpillar from $376.00 to $434.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Monday, September 30th. Citigroup decreased their price target on Caterpillar from $445.00 to $435.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a research note on Thursday, October 31st. Finally, Evercore ISI cut shares of Caterpillar from an “in-line” rating to an “underperform” rating and boosted their price objective for the company from $321.00 to $365.00 in a research note on Wednesday, November 13th. Four equities research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, eight have given a hold rating and six have given a buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $365.33.

Caterpillar Trading Up 2.3 %

CAT opened at $390.26 on Friday. Caterpillar Inc. has a 52-week low of $241.81 and a 52-week high of $418.50. The firm has a market capitalization of $188.42 billion, a P/E ratio of 18.09, a P/E/G ratio of 1.89 and a beta of 1.10. The company has a quick ratio of 0.86, a current ratio of 1.40 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.33. The firm’s 50 day moving average is $384.76 and its 200-day moving average is $355.22.

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

Caterpillar Dividend Announcement

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, November 20th. Investors of record on Monday, October 21st were issued a $1.41 dividend. This represents a $5.64 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.45%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Monday, October 21st. Caterpillar’s dividend payout ratio is currently 26.15%.

Insider Activity at Caterpillar

In other 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 transaction of $1,119,081.60. Following the sale, the insider now owns 33,442 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $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 SEC, which is accessible through the SEC website. Also, CAO William E. Schaupp sold 968 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, November 1st. The shares were sold at an average price of $380.98, for a total value of $368,788.64. Following the completion of the sale, the chief accounting officer now owns 1,686 shares in the company, valued at approximately $642,332.28. This represents a 36.47 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last ninety days, insiders have sold 20,774 shares of company stock valued at $8,233,034. Corporate insiders own 0.29% of the company’s stock.

About Caterpillar

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.