UBS Group Raises Caterpillar (NYSE:CAT) Price Target to $285.00

Caterpillar (NYSE:CAT) had its price target hoisted by UBS Group from $270.00 to $285.00 in a research note released on Wednesday, Benzinga reports. The brokerage currently has a sell rating on the industrial products company’s stock.

CAT has been the topic of several other reports. Oppenheimer reissued a market perform rating on shares of Caterpillar in a research note on Thursday, April 18th. HSBC increased their target price on shares of Caterpillar from $330.00 to $360.00 and gave the stock a hold rating in a research note on Tuesday, April 30th. StockNews.com lowered shares of Caterpillar from a buy rating to a hold rating in a research note on Friday, August 2nd. Citigroup began coverage on shares of Caterpillar in a research note on Wednesday, June 26th. They set a buy rating and a $380.00 target price on the stock. Finally, Raymond James began coverage on shares of Caterpillar in a research note on Friday, June 28th. They set a market perform rating on the stock. Two equities research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, nine have issued a hold rating and eight have given a buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, Caterpillar presently has an average rating of Hold and a consensus price target of $337.38.

Caterpillar Stock Performance

NYSE:CAT traded up $2.10 during mid-day trading on Wednesday, hitting $338.26. The company’s stock had a trading volume of 1,668,078 shares, compared to its average volume of 2,750,098. Caterpillar has a 1 year low of $223.76 and a 1 year high of $382.01. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.41, a current ratio of 1.35 and a quick ratio of 0.83. The stock has a market cap of $165.43 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 15.27, a PEG ratio of 1.72 and a beta of 1.12. The business’s fifty day moving average is $333.35 and its two-hundred day moving average is $338.78.

Caterpillar (NYSE:CAT) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, August 6th. The industrial products company reported $5.99 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $5.53 by $0.46. Caterpillar had a net margin of 16.79% and a return on equity of 58.61%. The company had revenue of $16.69 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $16.91 billion. During the same period in the prior year, the company earned $5.55 earnings per share. The firm’s revenue was down 3.6% on a year-over-year basis. Analysts anticipate that Caterpillar will post 21.57 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Caterpillar Increases Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, August 20th. Shareholders of record on Monday, July 22nd will be issued a $1.41 dividend. This is an increase from Caterpillar’s previous quarterly dividend of $1.30. The ex-dividend date is Monday, July 22nd. This represents a $5.64 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.67%. Caterpillar’s dividend payout ratio is presently 25.46%.

Caterpillar announced that its Board of Directors has initiated a share buyback program on Wednesday, June 12th that permits the company to buyback $20.00 billion in shares. This buyback authorization permits the industrial products company to reacquire up to 12.7% of its stock through open market purchases. Stock buyback programs are often a sign that the company’s board of directors believes its shares are undervalued.

Insider Transactions at Caterpillar

In other news, insider Cheryl H. Johnson sold 1,508 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, May 30th. The shares were sold at an average price of $340.00, for a total transaction of $512,720.00. Following the completion of the sale, the insider now owns 20,023 shares in the company, valued at approximately $6,807,820. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this link. In other news, insider Cheryl H. Johnson sold 1,508 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, May 30th. The shares were sold at an average price of $340.00, for a total transaction of $512,720.00. Following the completion of the sale, the insider now owns 20,023 shares in the company, valued at approximately $6,807,820. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this link. Also, insider Lange Bob De sold 21,847 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, May 13th. The stock was sold at an average price of $356.90, for a total transaction of $7,797,194.30. Following the sale, the insider now owns 71,115 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $25,380,943.50. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold 24,863 shares of company stock worth $8,837,714 in the last 90 days. Insiders own 0.33% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Caterpillar

Institutional investors have recently modified their holdings of the company. Axxcess Wealth Management LLC lifted its position in shares of Caterpillar by 20.0% during the 4th quarter. Axxcess Wealth Management LLC now owns 21,343 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $6,310,000 after purchasing an additional 3,558 shares during the last quarter. Acadian Asset Management LLC lifted its position in shares of Caterpillar by 17.2% during the 1st quarter. Acadian Asset Management LLC now owns 9,037 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $3,308,000 after purchasing an additional 1,327 shares during the last quarter. Catalyst Financial Partners LLC lifted its position in shares of Caterpillar by 1.5% during the 4th quarter. Catalyst Financial Partners LLC now owns 4,295 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $1,270,000 after purchasing an additional 63 shares during the last quarter. Diversify Advisory Services LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Caterpillar during the 1st quarter worth $926,000. Finally, Aigen Investment Management LP purchased a new stake in shares of Caterpillar during the 4th quarter worth $222,000. 70.98% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

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.