Caterpillar Inc. (NYSE:CAT) Receives $923.14 Average PT from Brokerages

Shares of Caterpillar Inc. (NYSE:CAT) have been assigned a consensus recommendation of “Moderate Buy” from the twenty-five analysts that are currently covering the company, MarketBeat.com reports. Nine investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and sixteen have given a buy rating to the company. The average twelve-month price target among brokers that have issued ratings on the stock in the last year is $923.1364.

CAT has been the topic of a number of research analyst reports. Citigroup raised their target price on shares of Caterpillar from $905.00 to $1,020.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Friday, May 1st. Barclays upped their price target on shares of Caterpillar from $700.00 to $800.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a report on Friday, May 1st. Sanford C. Bernstein lifted their price objective on Caterpillar from $769.00 to $879.00 and gave the stock a “market perform” rating in a research note on Friday, May 1st. Bank of America boosted their price objective on Caterpillar from $930.00 to $989.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Friday, May 1st. Finally, Daiwa Securities Group raised their target price on Caterpillar from $790.00 to $900.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a report on Friday, May 1st.

Insider Activity

In other news, CFO Andrew R. J. Bonfield sold 15,674 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, May 6th. The shares were sold at an average price of $918.71, for a total transaction of $14,399,860.54. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief financial officer owned 52,935 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $48,631,913.85. This represents a 22.85% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through the SEC website. Also, insider Lange Bob De sold 24,222 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, May 6th. The shares were sold at an average price of $922.92, for a total transaction of $22,354,968.24. Following the completion of the sale, the insider owned 86,029 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $79,397,884.68. The trade was a 21.97% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale is available in the SEC filing. Over the last quarter, insiders sold 98,273 shares of company stock worth $89,439,960. Corporate insiders own 0.33% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Trading of Caterpillar

A number of hedge funds have recently modified their holdings of CAT. Lam Group Inc. acquired a new position in shares of Caterpillar in the first quarter valued at $26,000. Torren Management LLC acquired a new stake in Caterpillar during the fourth quarter worth $27,000. Frazier Financial Advisors LLC increased its holdings in Caterpillar by 220.0% in the 4th quarter. Frazier Financial Advisors LLC now owns 48 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $28,000 after buying an additional 33 shares during the period. IFS Advisors LLC acquired a new position in shares of Caterpillar in the 4th quarter valued at $31,000. Finally, Rialto Wealth Management LLC raised its stake in shares of Caterpillar by 47.4% in the 4th quarter. Rialto Wealth Management LLC now owns 56 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $32,000 after buying an additional 18 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors own 70.98% of the company’s stock.

Caterpillar Stock Down 2.5%

CAT opened at $887.04 on Friday. The firm has a market cap of $408.56 billion, a P/E ratio of 44.15, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.80 and a beta of 1.63. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.64, a quick ratio of 0.81 and a current ratio of 1.35. The business has a 50 day moving average price of $807.51 and a 200 day moving average price of $701.11. Caterpillar has a twelve month low of $339.50 and a twelve month high of $931.35.

Caterpillar (NYSE:CAT) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, April 30th. The industrial products company reported $5.54 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $4.65 by $0.89. Caterpillar had a return on equity of 48.21% and a net margin of 13.33%.The company had revenue of $17.42 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $16.53 billion. During the same quarter last year, the company posted $4.25 earnings per share. The company’s revenue for the quarter was up 22.2% compared to the same quarter last year. Research analysts forecast that Caterpillar will post 24.67 EPS for the current year.

Caterpillar Announces Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, May 19th. Stockholders of record on Monday, April 20th were paid a $1.51 dividend. The ex-dividend date was Monday, April 20th. This represents a $6.04 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 0.7%. Caterpillar’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 30.06%.

About Caterpillar

Caterpillar Inc is a global manufacturer of construction and mining equipment, diesel and natural gas engines, industrial gas turbines and locomotives. The company’s product portfolio includes earthmoving machines such as excavators, bulldozers, wheel loaders and off‑highway trucks, as well as a range of power generation products including generator sets and power systems for industrial and commercial use. Caterpillar serves customers across heavy construction, mining, energy, transportation and related industries with both equipment and integrated technology solutions.

In addition to manufacturing, Caterpillar provides a broad range of aftermarket parts and support services, including maintenance, repair, remanufacturing and fleet management tools.