Caterpillar Inc. (NYSE:CAT) Stock Position Decreased by Empirical Financial Services LLC d.b.a. Empirical Wealth Management

Empirical Financial Services LLC d.b.a. Empirical Wealth Management cut its holdings in Caterpillar Inc. (NYSE:CAT) by 12.4% in the fourth quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The fund owned 6,695 shares of the industrial products company’s stock after selling 951 shares during the quarter. Empirical Financial Services LLC d.b.a. Empirical Wealth Management’s holdings in Caterpillar were worth $1,980,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

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

Caterpillar Trading Up 0.8 %

Shares of CAT stock traded up $2.90 on Tuesday, reaching $345.00. The company had a trading volume of 1,943,358 shares, compared to its average volume of 2,503,008. The company has a 50-day moving average of $352.57 and a 200-day moving average of $304.94. Caterpillar Inc. has a 12 month low of $205.60 and a 12 month high of $382.01. The stock has a market cap of $168.72 billion, a PE ratio of 15.58, a PEG ratio of 1.44 and a beta of 1.19. The company has a current ratio of 1.35, a quick ratio of 0.83 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.41.

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

Caterpillar Announces Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, May 20th. Shareholders of record on Monday, April 22nd will be issued a $1.30 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, April 19th. This represents a $5.20 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.51%. Caterpillar’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 23.48%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of analysts recently weighed in on the stock. HSBC upped their target price on shares of Caterpillar from $330.00 to $360.00 and gave the company a “hold” rating in a research note on Tuesday, April 30th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. increased their price objective on Caterpillar from $385.00 to $435.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research note on Tuesday, April 16th. Robert W. Baird increased their target price on shares of Caterpillar from $210.00 to $257.00 and gave the stock an “underperform” rating in a research report on Tuesday, February 6th. Wells Fargo & Company lifted their target price on shares of Caterpillar from $290.00 to $325.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a research note on Tuesday, February 6th. Finally, StockNews.com lowered Caterpillar from a “strong-buy” rating to a “buy” rating in a research note on Tuesday, February 20th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, ten have given a hold rating and eight have issued a buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, Caterpillar currently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $323.35.

Insider Activity

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