Caterpillar Inc. (NYSE:CAT) Given Consensus Rating of “Hold” by Analysts

Shares of Caterpillar Inc. (NYSE:CAT) have earned a consensus rating of “Hold” from the seventeen ratings firms that are currently covering the company, MarketBeat.com reports. Four investment analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, seven have given a hold rating and six have issued a buy rating on the company. The average 12 month price objective among brokers that have covered the stock in the last year is $365.33.

CAT has been the subject of a number of analyst reports. Robert W. Baird upped their price target on Caterpillar from $299.00 to $300.00 and gave the stock an “underperform” rating in a report on Thursday, October 31st. Evercore ISI downgraded shares of Caterpillar from an “in-line” rating to an “underperform” rating and upped their target price for the company from $321.00 to $365.00 in a research note on Wednesday, November 13th. Citigroup dropped their price target on shares of Caterpillar from $445.00 to $435.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a research note on Thursday, October 31st. Morgan Stanley cut shares of Caterpillar from an “equal weight” rating to an “underweight” rating and decreased their price objective for the company from $349.00 to $332.00 in a research report on Monday, October 14th. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. lifted their target price on Caterpillar from $435.00 to $500.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research report on Monday, October 14th.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, insider Lange Bob De sold 12,657 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Thursday, November 7th. The stock was sold at an average price of $410.25, for a total transaction of $5,192,534.25. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider now directly owns 71,107 shares in the company, valued at $29,171,646.75. This represents a 15.11 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this hyperlink. Also, CAO William E. Schaupp sold 968 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Friday, November 1st. The shares were sold at an average price of $380.98, for a total value of $368,788.64. Following the completion of the sale, the chief accounting officer now owns 1,686 shares in the company, valued at $642,332.28. The trade was a 36.47 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold a total of 20,774 shares of company stock worth $8,233,034 over the last quarter. 0.29% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Caterpillar

Several large investors have recently made changes to their positions in CAT. Anchor Investment Management LLC increased its position in Caterpillar by 2.9% in the 3rd quarter. Anchor Investment Management LLC now owns 13,317 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $5,208,000 after acquiring an additional 376 shares during the period. Tudor Financial Inc. acquired a new position in shares of Caterpillar during the third quarter valued at $854,000. SOA Wealth Advisors LLC. raised its stake in shares of Caterpillar by 47.2% during the third quarter. SOA Wealth Advisors LLC. now owns 156 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $61,000 after purchasing an additional 50 shares in the last quarter. Second Line Capital LLC bought a new position in Caterpillar in the 3rd quarter valued at about $216,000. Finally, Hohimer Wealth Management LLC increased its stake in Caterpillar by 2.7% during the 3rd quarter. Hohimer Wealth Management LLC now owns 4,763 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $1,863,000 after buying an additional 125 shares during the period. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 70.98% of the company’s stock.

Caterpillar Price Performance

Caterpillar stock opened at $397.49 on Wednesday. The company has a quick ratio of 0.86, a current ratio of 1.40 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.33. The firm has a market capitalization of $191.91 billion, a P/E ratio of 18.43, a PEG ratio of 1.92 and a beta of 1.10. The firm has a fifty day moving average of $386.81 and a 200-day moving average of $356.00. Caterpillar has a 52-week low of $246.01 and a 52-week high of $418.50.

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

Caterpillar Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, November 20th. Stockholders of record on Monday, October 21st were issued a $1.41 dividend. This represents a $5.64 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.42%. The ex-dividend date was Monday, October 21st. Caterpillar’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 26.15%.

Caterpillar Company 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.