Conning Inc. Increases Stake in Caterpillar Inc. (NYSE:CAT)

Conning Inc. raised its holdings in shares of Caterpillar Inc. (NYSE:CAT) by 2.7% in the 4th quarter, HoldingsChannel.com reports. The fund owned 133,826 shares of the industrial products company’s stock after purchasing an additional 3,526 shares during the quarter. Caterpillar makes up approximately 1.4% of Conning Inc.’s holdings, making the stock its 7th largest holding. Conning Inc.’s holdings in Caterpillar were worth $39,491,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also made changes to their positions in CAT. Atlas Capital Advisors LLC raised its holdings in Caterpillar by 272.4% in the first quarter. Atlas Capital Advisors LLC now owns 108 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $25,000 after purchasing an additional 79 shares during the period. Kayne Anderson Rudnick Investment Management LLC lifted its holdings in Caterpillar by 730.8% during the first quarter. Kayne Anderson Rudnick Investment Management LLC now owns 108 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $25,000 after acquiring an additional 95 shares in the last quarter. Gilfoyle & Co LLC acquired a new position in Caterpillar in the fourth quarter valued at about $30,000. A.P. Gilfoyle & Co. L.P. bought a new stake in shares of Caterpillar in the fourth quarter worth about $30,000. Finally, First Capital Advisors Group LLC. acquired a new position in shares of Caterpillar in the 2nd quarter valued at approximately $30,000. 70.98% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

CAT has been the subject of several research reports. Morgan Stanley began coverage on shares of Caterpillar in a research report on Monday, January 8th. They set an “equal weight” rating and a $270.00 price objective for the company. JPMorgan Chase & Co. lifted their price target on Caterpillar from $345.00 to $385.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research note on Tuesday, February 6th. Robert W. Baird upped their price objective on Caterpillar from $210.00 to $257.00 and gave the stock an “underperform” rating in a research report on Tuesday, February 6th. Evercore ISI cut Caterpillar from an “outperform” rating to an “in-line” rating and boosted their target price for the company from $321.00 to $338.00 in a research note on Tuesday, February 20th. Finally, StockNews.com downgraded Caterpillar from a “strong-buy” rating to a “buy” rating in a research report on Tuesday, February 20th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, eight have given a hold rating and nine have given a buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company has an average rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $301.94.

Insider Activity at Caterpillar

In other news, CFO Andrew R. J. Bonfield sold 10,000 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, January 25th. The stock was sold at an average price of $300.04, for a total transaction of $3,000,400.00. Following the transaction, the chief financial officer now owns 67,317 shares in the company, valued at $20,197,792.68. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available through the SEC website. In other news, insider Anthony D. Fassino sold 4,575 shares of Caterpillar stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, February 28th. The shares were sold at an average price of $329.80, for a total value of $1,508,835.00. Following the completion of the sale, the insider now directly owns 23,474 shares in the company, valued at $7,741,725.20. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which can be accessed through this link. Also, CFO Andrew R. J. Bonfield sold 10,000 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, January 25th. The stock was sold at an average price of $300.04, for a total value of $3,000,400.00. Following the sale, the chief financial officer now directly owns 67,317 shares in the company, valued at approximately $20,197,792.68. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last 90 days, insiders have sold 45,769 shares of company stock worth $14,509,306. Insiders own 0.33% of the company’s stock.

Caterpillar Stock Performance

Caterpillar stock traded down $6.35 during midday trading on Friday, reaching $365.63. 2,072,870 shares of the company’s stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 2,230,103. The stock’s 50-day simple moving average is $342.95 and its 200 day simple moving average is $294.97. The firm has a market cap of $182.60 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 18.15, a P/E/G ratio of 1.63 and a beta of 1.17. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.25, a quick ratio of 0.87 and a current ratio of 1.35. Caterpillar Inc. has a 52 week low of $204.04 and a 52 week high of $382.01.

Caterpillar (NYSE:CAT) last posted its earnings results on Monday, February 5th. The industrial products company reported $5.23 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $4.76 by $0.47. Caterpillar had a return on equity of 56.99% and a net margin of 15.41%. The business had revenue of $17.07 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $17.06 billion. During the same period in the previous year, the firm earned $3.86 EPS. The firm’s revenue was up 2.8% compared to the same quarter last year. On average, analysts expect that Caterpillar Inc. will post 21.33 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Caterpillar Dividend Announcement

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, May 20th. Investors of record on Monday, April 22nd will be issued a dividend of $1.30 per share. This represents a $5.20 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.42%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, April 19th. Caterpillar’s payout ratio is 25.82%.

Caterpillar Profile

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.