Caterpillar (NYSE:CAT) PT Raised to $445.00 at Citigroup

Caterpillar (NYSE:CAT) had its target price upped by Citigroup from $380.00 to $445.00 in a report issued on Wednesday, Benzinga reports. Citigroup currently has a buy rating on the industrial products company’s stock.

Several other research analysts also recently commented on CAT. Bank of America increased their price objective on Caterpillar from $376.00 to $434.00 and gave the company a buy rating in a research note on Monday, September 30th. UBS Group raised their price target on shares of Caterpillar from $270.00 to $285.00 and gave the stock a sell rating in a research note on Wednesday, August 7th. StockNews.com cut shares of Caterpillar from a buy rating to a hold rating in a research note on Tuesday, September 24th. Truist Financial raised their target price on shares of Caterpillar from $399.00 to $456.00 and gave the stock a buy rating in a research note on Wednesday. Finally, Barclays boosted their target price on Caterpillar from $315.00 to $335.00 and gave the stock an equal weight rating in a report on Wednesday, August 7th. Two analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, ten have assigned a hold rating and seven have given a buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has an average rating of Hold and a consensus price target of $347.56.

Caterpillar Stock Performance

CAT opened at $402.02 on Wednesday. The firm’s fifty day simple moving average is $357.45 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $349.37. Caterpillar has a 52-week low of $223.76 and a 52-week high of $403.60. The company has a market cap of $196.61 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 18.15, a PEG ratio of 1.85 and a beta of 1.10. The company has a quick ratio of 0.78, a current ratio of 1.28 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.39.

Caterpillar (NYSE:CAT) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, August 6th. The industrial products company reported $5.99 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $5.53 by $0.46. Caterpillar had a return on equity of 59.88% and a net margin of 16.58%. The company had revenue of $16.69 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $16.91 billion. During the same period in the previous year, the firm posted $5.55 EPS. Caterpillar’s revenue was down 3.6% compared to the same quarter last year. Equities analysts anticipate that Caterpillar will post 21.91 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Caterpillar Announces Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, November 20th. Stockholders of record on Monday, October 21st will be issued a $1.41 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Monday, October 21st. This represents a $5.64 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.40%. Caterpillar’s dividend payout ratio is currently 25.46%.

Insider Activity at Caterpillar

In other news, Director Gerald Johnson purchased 100 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Wednesday, September 4th. The shares were bought at an average cost of $338.59 per share, for a total transaction of $33,859.00. Following the completion of the purchase, the director now directly owns 2,842 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $962,272.78. This trade represents a 0.00 % increase in their ownership of the stock. The purchase was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this link. In related news, insider Cheryl H. Johnson sold 2,975 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, August 22nd. The shares were sold at an average price of $342.48, for a total transaction of $1,018,878.00. Following the sale, the insider now directly owns 15,615 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $5,347,825.20. This represents a 0.00 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Also, Director Gerald Johnson purchased 100 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Wednesday, September 4th. The stock was acquired at an average cost of $338.59 per share, with a total value of $33,859.00. Following the transaction, the director now directly owns 2,842 shares in the company, valued at $962,272.78. This trade represents a 0.00 % increase in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this purchase can be found here. In the last quarter, insiders sold 7,668 shares of company stock worth $2,665,760. Insiders own 0.33% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Trading of Caterpillar

Several hedge funds have recently modified their holdings of the stock. Visionary Wealth Advisors increased its stake in shares of Caterpillar by 3.2% during the fourth quarter. Visionary Wealth Advisors now owns 3,295 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $974,000 after buying an additional 101 shares during the period. BOKF NA increased its position in shares of Caterpillar by 1.0% in the 4th quarter. BOKF NA now owns 33,886 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $10,019,000 after purchasing an additional 326 shares during the last quarter. First Financial Bankshares Inc purchased a new stake in shares of Caterpillar during the 4th quarter worth $619,000. Creative Planning grew its stake in shares of Caterpillar by 8.1% during the fourth quarter. Creative Planning now owns 180,613 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $53,402,000 after purchasing an additional 13,482 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Kestra Advisory Services LLC increased its holdings in Caterpillar by 5.1% in the fourth quarter. Kestra Advisory Services LLC now owns 134,766 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $39,846,000 after buying an additional 6,514 shares during the last quarter. 70.98% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

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.