Caterpillar Inc. (NYSE:CAT) Receives Consensus Recommendation of “Moderate Buy” from Analysts

Caterpillar Inc. (NYSE:CAT) has received a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” from the fifteen ratings firms that are covering the firm, MarketBeat.com reports. Six equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and nine have given a buy rating to the company. The average 12 month target price among brokers that have updated their coverage on the stock in the last year is $377.83.

A number of research firms recently weighed in on CAT. Bank of America decreased their price objective on Caterpillar from $452.00 to $414.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a report on Friday, January 31st. DA Davidson increased their price objective on Caterpillar from $325.00 to $331.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a report on Monday, May 5th. Citigroup increased their price objective on Caterpillar from $320.00 to $370.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Monday, May 5th. Truist Financial restated a “buy” rating and issued a $396.00 price objective (up from $389.00) on shares of Caterpillar in a report on Thursday, May 1st. Finally, Robert W. Baird upgraded Caterpillar from a “neutral” rating to an “outperform” rating and increased their price objective for the company from $309.00 to $395.00 in a report on Tuesday.

Caterpillar Stock Up 2.9%

Shares of NYSE:CAT opened at $352.58 on Wednesday. The company has a fifty day moving average of $317.07 and a 200-day moving average of $354.64. The company has a market capitalization of $166.08 billion, a PE ratio of 15.98, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.87 and a beta of 1.35. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.40, a quick ratio of 0.89 and a current ratio of 1.42. Caterpillar has a 52-week low of $267.30 and a 52-week high of $418.50.

Caterpillar (NYSE:CAT) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, April 30th. The industrial products company reported $4.25 earnings per share for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $4.35 by ($0.10). The company had revenue of $14.25 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $14.64 billion. Caterpillar had a net margin of 16.65% and a return on equity of 58.18%. The business’s revenue for the quarter was down 9.8% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the previous year, the company earned $5.60 earnings per share. On average, equities analysts predict that Caterpillar will post 19.86 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Caterpillar Dividend Announcement

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, May 20th. Stockholders of record on Monday, April 21st will be given a dividend of $1.41 per share. The ex-dividend date is Monday, April 21st. This represents a $5.64 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.60%. Caterpillar’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 27.49%.

Insider Transactions at Caterpillar

In related news, insider Jason Kaiser sold 2,425 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, February 18th. The shares were sold at an average price of $354.70, for a total value of $860,147.50. Following the transaction, the insider now owns 6,275 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $2,225,742.50. This trade represents a 27.87% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Also, Director David Maclennan purchased 375 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, May 7th. The stock was acquired at an average cost of $320.70 per share, for a total transaction of $120,262.50. Following the transaction, the director now owns 6,653 shares in the company, valued at $2,133,617.10. This represents a 5.97% increase in their position. The disclosure for this purchase can be found here. Insiders own 0.29% of the company’s stock.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Caterpillar

Large investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the business. Vanguard Group Inc. increased its stake in Caterpillar by 0.6% in the 4th quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 46,809,540 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $16,980,629,000 after buying an additional 284,366 shares during the last quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC increased its stake in Caterpillar by 2.3% in the 4th quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 10,449,770 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $3,790,841,000 after buying an additional 236,315 shares during the last quarter. Fisher Asset Management LLC increased its stake in Caterpillar by 1.4% in the 4th quarter. Fisher Asset Management LLC now owns 9,081,775 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $3,294,505,000 after buying an additional 129,143 shares during the last quarter. Northern Trust Corp increased its stake in Caterpillar by 11.8% in the 4th quarter. Northern Trust Corp now owns 6,847,330 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $2,483,937,000 after buying an additional 724,477 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Norges Bank purchased a new stake in Caterpillar in the 4th quarter valued at about $2,184,364,000. Institutional investors own 70.98% of the company’s stock.

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.