Hennion & Walsh Asset Management Inc. Sells 569 Shares of Caterpillar Inc. (NYSE:CAT)

Hennion & Walsh Asset Management Inc. cut its stake in Caterpillar Inc. (NYSE:CAT) by 29.2% in the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The fund owned 1,379 shares of the industrial products company’s stock after selling 569 shares during the quarter. Hennion & Walsh Asset Management Inc.’s holdings in Caterpillar were worth $500,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other institutional investors also recently bought and sold shares of the company. Northside Capital Management LLC lifted its position in shares of Caterpillar by 50.4% during the fourth quarter. Northside Capital Management LLC now owns 1,053 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $382,000 after purchasing an additional 353 shares during the last quarter. Financial Enhancement Group LLC bought a new stake in shares of Caterpillar during the fourth quarter worth $270,000. Smith Thornton Advisors LLC lifted its position in shares of Caterpillar by 50.1% during the fourth quarter. Smith Thornton Advisors LLC now owns 896 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $325,000 after purchasing an additional 299 shares during the last quarter. Contravisory Investment Management Inc. lifted its position in shares of Caterpillar by 1,619.8% during the fourth quarter. Contravisory Investment Management Inc. now owns 22,030 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $7,992,000 after purchasing an additional 20,749 shares during the last quarter. Finally, RMR Wealth Builders lifted its position in shares of Caterpillar by 4.2% during the fourth quarter. RMR Wealth Builders now owns 1,475 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $535,000 after purchasing an additional 60 shares during the last quarter. 70.98% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, insider Cheryl H. Johnson sold 2,664 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Monday, November 4th. The shares were sold at an average price of $378.84, for a total transaction of $1,009,229.76. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider now owns 12,951 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $4,906,356.84. This trade represents a 17.06 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available at this hyperlink. Also, CFO Andrew R. J. Bonfield sold 10,000 shares of Caterpillar stock in a transaction on Thursday, January 16th. The shares were sold at an average price of $380.09, for a total transaction of $3,800,900.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief financial officer now directly owns 45,182 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $17,173,226.38. The trade was a 18.12 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold a total of 33,868 shares of company stock valued at $13,480,389 over the last 90 days. Insiders own 0.29% of the company’s stock.

Caterpillar Trading Up 1.4 %

NYSE CAT opened at $386.03 on Tuesday. The company has a fifty day simple moving average of $380.09 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $367.29. The stock has a market cap of $186.38 billion, a P/E ratio of 17.90, a P/E/G ratio of 1.72 and a beta of 1.13. Caterpillar Inc. has a 12-month low of $277.66 and a 12-month high of $418.50. The company has a current ratio of 1.40, a quick ratio of 0.86 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.33.

Caterpillar (NYSE:CAT) last issued its earnings results on Wednesday, October 30th. The industrial products company reported $5.17 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $5.33 by ($0.16). Caterpillar had a return on equity of 59.09% and a net margin of 16.26%. The business had revenue of $16.11 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $16.37 billion. During the same period last year, the business earned $5.52 EPS. The company’s revenue for the quarter was down 4.2% on a year-over-year basis. On average, analysts forecast that Caterpillar Inc. will post 21.68 earnings per share for the current year.

Caterpillar Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, February 20th. Investors of record on Tuesday, January 21st will be issued a dividend of $1.41 per share. The ex-dividend date is Tuesday, January 21st. This represents a $5.64 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.46%. Caterpillar’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 26.15%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

CAT has been the subject of several research analyst reports. Citigroup decreased their target price on Caterpillar from $460.00 to $420.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a research report on Tuesday, January 14th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. raised their price target on Caterpillar from $500.00 to $515.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research note on Monday, December 9th. Truist Financial cut their price target on Caterpillar from $471.00 to $455.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a research note on Thursday, January 16th. Jefferies Financial Group raised their price target on Caterpillar from $455.00 to $475.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Friday, December 6th. Finally, Evercore ISI upgraded Caterpillar from an “underperform” rating to an “in-line” rating and set a $365.00 price target on the stock in a research note on Monday, January 13th. Three analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, eight have assigned a hold rating and seven have given a buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, Caterpillar presently has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $380.60.

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.