International Assets Investment Management LLC Sells 2,131,226 Shares of Caterpillar Inc. (NYSE:CAT)

International Assets Investment Management LLC reduced its position in Caterpillar Inc. (NYSE:CAT) by 99.7% during the fourth quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the SEC. The firm owned 5,441 shares of the industrial products company’s stock after selling 2,131,226 shares during the period. International Assets Investment Management LLC’s holdings in Caterpillar were worth $1,958,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other institutional investors have also added to or reduced their stakes in the business. Fairscale Capital LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Caterpillar during the 2nd quarter valued at approximately $36,000. Capital Performance Advisors LLP purchased a new stake in shares of Caterpillar during the third quarter worth $36,000. Kimelman & Baird LLC boosted its holdings in shares of Caterpillar by 42.9% in the third quarter. Kimelman & Baird LLC now owns 100 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $39,000 after acquiring an additional 30 shares during the period. HWG Holdings LP purchased a new position in shares of Caterpillar in the second quarter valued at $54,000. Finally, SOA Wealth Advisors LLC. lifted its holdings in Caterpillar by 47.2% during the 3rd quarter. SOA Wealth Advisors LLC. now owns 156 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $61,000 after purchasing an additional 50 shares in the last quarter. 70.98% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Caterpillar Stock Performance

NYSE:CAT opened at $360.75 on Thursday. Caterpillar Inc. has a 1-year low of $276.94 and a 1-year high of $418.50. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.33, a current ratio of 1.40 and a quick ratio of 0.86. The business has a 50 day moving average of $383.04 and a 200 day moving average of $365.03. The company has a market capitalization of $174.17 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 16.72, a PEG ratio of 1.92 and a beta of 1.13.

Caterpillar (NYSE:CAT) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, October 30th. The industrial products company reported $5.17 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $5.33 by ($0.16). The business had revenue of $16.11 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $16.37 billion. Caterpillar had a net margin of 16.26% and a return on equity of 59.09%. Caterpillar’s revenue for the quarter was down 4.2% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period last year, the company posted $5.52 EPS. On average, sell-side analysts predict that Caterpillar Inc. will post 21.68 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Caterpillar Announces Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, February 20th. Stockholders of record on Tuesday, January 21st will be paid a $1.41 dividend. This represents a $5.64 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.56%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Tuesday, January 21st. Caterpillar’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 26.15%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of research firms have weighed in on CAT. JPMorgan Chase & Co. lifted their target price on Caterpillar from $500.00 to $515.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a report on Monday, December 9th. Truist Financial upped their target price on shares of Caterpillar from $454.00 to $471.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Thursday, December 19th. Morgan Stanley downgraded shares of Caterpillar from an “equal weight” rating to an “underweight” rating and cut their price target for the company from $349.00 to $332.00 in a report on Monday, October 14th. UBS Group upped their price target on shares of Caterpillar from $285.00 to $295.00 and gave the stock a “sell” rating in a report on Monday, November 4th. Finally, Robert W. Baird lifted their price objective on Caterpillar from $299.00 to $300.00 and gave the company an “underperform” rating in a research note on Thursday, October 31st. Four equities research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, seven have assigned a hold rating and seven have assigned a buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, the company presently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $384.33.

Insider Activity at Caterpillar

In related news, Director Daniel M. Dickinson sold 1,300 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Wednesday, November 6th. The shares were sold at an average price of $418.00, for a total transaction of $543,400.00. Following the completion of the sale, the director now directly owns 4,976 shares in the company, valued at $2,079,968. This represents a 20.71 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available through this link. Also, CAO William E. Schaupp sold 968 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Friday, November 1st. The stock was sold at an average price of $380.98, for a total transaction of $368,788.64. Following the completion of the sale, the chief accounting officer now directly owns 1,686 shares in the company, valued at approximately $642,332.28. This trade represents a 36.47 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold 23,868 shares of company stock worth $9,679,489 in the last ninety days. 0.29% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

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.