Lee Danner & Bass Inc. Trims Stock Holdings in Caterpillar Inc. (NYSE:CAT)

Lee Danner & Bass Inc. cut its position in shares of Caterpillar Inc. (NYSE:CAT) by 10.4% in the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 40,244 shares of the industrial products company’s stock after selling 4,681 shares during the period. Caterpillar comprises 1.0% of Lee Danner & Bass Inc.’s portfolio, making the stock its 22nd biggest position. Lee Danner & Bass Inc.’s holdings in Caterpillar were worth $11,899,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other institutional investors and hedge funds have also bought and sold shares of the company. International Assets Investment Management LLC increased its holdings in shares of 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 acquiring an additional 1,488,813 shares during the period. Winslow Capital Management LLC lifted its holdings in shares of Caterpillar by 2,265.3% in the 3rd 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 period. FMR LLC raised its holdings in Caterpillar by 14.9% in the 3rd quarter. FMR LLC now owns 6,038,207 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $1,648,431,000 after purchasing an additional 781,111 shares during the period. J.P. Morgan Private Wealth Advisors LLC acquired a new position in Caterpillar in the 3rd quarter worth about $101,872,000. Finally, Cerity Partners LLC increased its stake in Caterpillar by 265.2% during the 4th quarter. Cerity Partners LLC now owns 507,322 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $150,000,000 after buying an additional 368,421 shares in the last quarter. 70.98% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Caterpillar Stock Performance

Shares of NYSE CAT traded up $3.78 during midday trading on Monday, reaching $358.44. 772,658 shares of the company were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 2,418,967. The company has a current ratio of 1.35, a quick ratio of 0.87 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.25. The stock has a market cap of $179.00 billion, a P/E ratio of 17.61, a PEG ratio of 1.57 and a beta of 1.17. Caterpillar Inc. has a 1 year low of $204.04 and a 1 year high of $382.01. The stock has a fifty day simple moving average of $346.70 and a 200 day simple moving average of $298.22.

Caterpillar (NYSE:CAT) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Monday, February 5th. The industrial products company reported $5.23 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $4.76 by $0.47. The firm had revenue of $17.07 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $17.06 billion. Caterpillar had a net margin of 15.41% and a return on equity of 56.99%. The firm’s revenue was up 2.8% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter last year, the firm earned $3.86 earnings per share. On average, research analysts forecast that Caterpillar Inc. will post 21.41 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Caterpillar Dividend Announcement

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, May 20th. Stockholders of record on Monday, April 22nd will be given a dividend of $1.30 per share. The ex-dividend date is Friday, April 19th. This represents a $5.20 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.45%. Caterpillar’s payout ratio is 25.82%.

Insider Activity

In other news, insider Lange Bob De sold 21,194 shares of Caterpillar 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 completion of the sale, the insider now directly owns 61,092 shares in the company, valued at approximately $19,886,667.84. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available through this hyperlink. In other news, insider Lange Bob De sold 21,194 shares of Caterpillar 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 completion of the sale, the insider now directly owns 61,092 shares in the company, valued at approximately $19,886,667.84. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available through this hyperlink. Also, Director David Maclennan acquired 350 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, February 23rd. The shares were bought at an average price 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 in the company, valued at $1,693,812.06. The disclosure for this purchase can be found here. In the last three months, insiders sold 45,769 shares of company stock worth $14,509,306. Company insiders own 0.33% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of research firms have recently issued reports on CAT. The Goldman Sachs Group upped their price target on Caterpillar from $357.00 to $408.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Tuesday, April 16th. Morgan Stanley started coverage on Caterpillar in a research report on Monday, January 8th. They issued an “equal weight” rating and a $270.00 price objective for the company. Oppenheimer reiterated a “market perform” rating on shares of Caterpillar in a research report on Thursday. Evercore ISI cut Caterpillar from an “outperform” rating to an “in-line” rating and upped their price target for the stock from $321.00 to $338.00 in a research note on Tuesday, February 20th. Finally, TD Cowen raised their price target on Caterpillar from $300.00 to $338.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research note on Tuesday, February 6th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, nine have issued a hold rating and nine have issued a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, Caterpillar presently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $307.56.

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.