Ameriprise Financial Inc. Sells 312,363 Shares of Caterpillar Inc. $CAT

Ameriprise Financial Inc. decreased its holdings in shares of Caterpillar Inc. (NYSE:CAT) by 20.7% in the 3rd quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund owned 1,196,054 shares of the industrial products company’s stock after selling 312,363 shares during the quarter. Ameriprise Financial Inc. owned approximately 0.26% of Caterpillar worth $570,743,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in CAT. Norges Bank acquired a new position in Caterpillar in the 2nd quarter valued at about $2,165,899,000. Wellington Management Group LLP raised its position in shares of Caterpillar by 3,949.8% in the 3rd quarter. Wellington Management Group LLP now owns 5,228,058 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $2,494,568,000 after buying an additional 5,098,964 shares in the last quarter. Massachusetts Financial Services Co. MA boosted its holdings in shares of Caterpillar by 1,851.8% in the 3rd quarter. Massachusetts Financial Services Co. MA now owns 1,830,414 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $873,382,000 after purchasing an additional 1,736,631 shares in the last quarter. Marshall Wace LLP lifted its holdings in shares of Caterpillar by 425.2% in the second quarter. Marshall Wace LLP now owns 761,800 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $295,738,000 after acquiring an additional 616,739 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Bank of New York Mellon Corp grew its stake in shares of Caterpillar by 20.7% during the third quarter. Bank of New York Mellon Corp now owns 3,553,930 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $1,695,757,000 after buying an additional 609,023 shares during the last quarter. 70.98% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Insider Activity at Caterpillar

In other news, insider Anthony D. Fassino sold 10,671 shares of the stock in a transaction on Monday, February 2nd. The stock was sold at an average price of $680.45, for a total value of $7,261,081.95. Following the sale, the insider directly owned 41,151 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $28,001,197.95. This represents a 20.59% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this link. Also, insider Denise C. Johnson sold 39,138 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Monday, February 2nd. The shares were sold at an average price of $681.08, for a total transaction of $26,656,109.04. Following the sale, the insider owned 43,350 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $29,524,818. This represents a 47.45% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. Insiders sold a total of 135,950 shares of company stock worth $94,327,990 over the last 90 days. 0.33% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

CAT has been the subject of a number of recent research reports. Jefferies Financial Group increased their price objective on Caterpillar from $785.00 to $825.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Friday, March 6th. CICC Research assumed coverage on shares of Caterpillar in a research note on Friday, February 6th. They set an “outperform” rating on the stock. Morgan Stanley boosted their price objective on Caterpillar from $400.00 to $425.00 and gave the company an “underweight” rating in a report on Tuesday, February 3rd. UBS Group reiterated a “neutral” rating and set a $677.00 price objective on shares of Caterpillar in a report on Monday, February 2nd. Finally, Argus upped their price objective on shares of Caterpillar from $625.00 to $820.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Wednesday, February 11th. Sixteen equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, seven have given a Hold rating and one has assigned a Sell rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, Caterpillar currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $730.50.

Caterpillar Trading Down 1.0%

NYSE:CAT opened at $693.89 on Monday. The company has a quick ratio of 0.94, a current ratio of 1.44 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.44. The company has a fifty day moving average of $693.92 and a 200 day moving average of $586.07. The firm has a market capitalization of $322.86 billion, a P/E ratio of 36.87, a P/E/G ratio of 1.64 and a beta of 1.53. Caterpillar Inc. has a 52 week low of $267.30 and a 52 week high of $789.81.

Caterpillar (NYSE:CAT) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, January 29th. The industrial products company reported $5.16 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $4.67 by $0.49. The business had revenue of $19.13 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $17.81 billion. Caterpillar had a return on equity of 45.76% and a net margin of 13.14%.The firm’s quarterly revenue was up 17.9% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the prior year, the company earned $5.14 earnings per share. On average, research analysts predict that Caterpillar Inc. will post 19.86 earnings per share for the current year.

Caterpillar Company Profile

Caterpillar Inc is a global manufacturer of construction and mining equipment, diesel and natural gas engines, industrial gas turbines and locomotives. The company’s product portfolio includes earthmoving machines such as excavators, bulldozers, wheel loaders and off‑highway trucks, as well as a range of power generation products including generator sets and power systems for industrial and commercial use. Caterpillar serves customers across heavy construction, mining, energy, transportation and related industries with both equipment and integrated technology solutions.

In addition to manufacturing, Caterpillar provides a broad range of aftermarket parts and support services, including maintenance, repair, remanufacturing and fleet management tools.