CTC Alternative Strategies Ltd. Sells 7,799 Shares of Caterpillar Inc. (NYSE:CAT)

CTC Alternative Strategies Ltd. lowered its stake in shares of Caterpillar Inc. (NYSE:CAT) by 92.8% during the third quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund owned 601 shares of the industrial products company’s stock after selling 7,799 shares during the period. CTC Alternative Strategies Ltd.’s holdings in Caterpillar were worth $235,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission.

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the stock. Bbjs Financial Advisors LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Caterpillar during the second quarter worth about $28,000. Financial Connections Group Inc. acquired a new stake in shares of Caterpillar during the second quarter worth about $28,000. Capital Performance Advisors LLP acquired a new stake in shares of Caterpillar during the third quarter worth about $36,000. Fairscale Capital LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Caterpillar during the second quarter worth about $36,000. Finally, Kimelman & Baird LLC raised its position in Caterpillar by 42.9% in the 3rd quarter. Kimelman & Baird LLC now owns 100 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $39,000 after buying an additional 30 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors own 70.98% of the company’s stock.

Caterpillar Stock Up 0.0 %

Shares of Caterpillar stock opened at $395.03 on Friday. Caterpillar Inc. has a one year low of $255.81 and a one 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 stock’s 50-day moving average is $392.84 and its 200 day moving average is $359.16. The firm has a market cap of $190.72 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 18.31, a PEG ratio of 1.97 and a beta of 1.10.

Caterpillar (NYSE:CAT) last announced its earnings results on Wednesday, October 30th. The industrial products company reported $5.17 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 the consensus estimate of $16.37 billion. Caterpillar had a net margin of 16.26% and a return on equity of 59.09%. The firm’s revenue for the quarter was down 4.2% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the previous year, the company earned $5.52 EPS. Equities research analysts anticipate that Caterpillar Inc. will post 21.67 EPS for the current year.

Caterpillar Announces Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, November 20th. Stockholders of record on Monday, October 21st were paid a $1.41 dividend. This represents a $5.64 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.43%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Monday, October 21st. Caterpillar’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 26.15%.

Insider Transactions at Caterpillar

In other Caterpillar news, Director Gerald Johnson purchased 100 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, December 4th. The stock was bought at an average cost of $398.57 per share, with a total value of $39,857.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the director now owns 2,953 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $1,176,977.21. The trade was a 3.51 % increase in their position. The purchase was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is accessible 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 value of $368,788.64. Following the completion of the sale, the chief accounting officer now directly owns 1,686 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $642,332.28. This represents a 36.47 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold a total of 23,868 shares of company stock valued at $9,679,489 over the last ninety days. 0.29% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of equities research analysts recently issued reports on CAT shares. StockNews.com lowered Caterpillar from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Tuesday, September 24th. UBS Group lifted their target price on Caterpillar from $285.00 to $295.00 and gave the stock a “sell” rating in a research note on Monday, November 4th. Morgan Stanley downgraded Caterpillar from an “equal weight” rating to an “underweight” rating and reduced their price target for the company from $349.00 to $332.00 in a research note on Monday, October 14th. Robert W. Baird upped their target price on Caterpillar from $299.00 to $300.00 and gave the company an “underperform” rating in a research report on Thursday, October 31st. Finally, Jefferies Financial Group boosted their price target on Caterpillar from $455.00 to $475.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Friday. Four analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, eight have issued a hold rating and seven have assigned a buy rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock presently has an average rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $372.19.

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.