Caterpillar (NYSE:CAT) Rating Lowered to Hold at StockNews.com

StockNews.com lowered shares of Caterpillar (NYSE:CAT) from a buy rating to a hold rating in a research note released on Monday.

Other analysts have also issued research reports about the company. Raymond James began coverage on Caterpillar in a report on Friday, June 28th. They set a market perform rating on the stock. JPMorgan Chase & Co. increased their price target on Caterpillar from $385.00 to $435.00 and gave the company an overweight rating in a report on Tuesday, April 16th. The Goldman Sachs Group increased their price target on Caterpillar from $357.00 to $408.00 and gave the company a buy rating in a report on Tuesday, April 16th. TD Cowen increased their price target on Caterpillar from $338.00 to $340.00 and gave the company a buy rating in a report on Friday, April 26th. Finally, HSBC increased their price target on Caterpillar from $330.00 to $360.00 and gave the company a hold rating in a report on Tuesday, April 30th. One analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, ten have assigned a hold rating and eight have assigned a buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, the stock has a consensus rating of Hold and an average price target of $329.63.

Caterpillar Stock Up 0.8 %

Shares of CAT opened at $331.11 on Monday. The stock has a market capitalization of $161.93 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 14.95, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.70 and a beta of 1.12. Caterpillar has a 1 year low of $223.76 and a 1 year high of $382.01. The business’s 50 day simple moving average is $337.19 and its 200-day simple moving average is $331.43. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.41, a current ratio of 1.35 and a quick ratio of 0.83.

Caterpillar (NYSE:CAT) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, April 25th. The industrial products company reported $5.60 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $5.12 by $0.48. The business had revenue of $15.80 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $16.07 billion. Caterpillar had a return on equity of 58.61% and a net margin of 16.79%. As a group, equities analysts expect that Caterpillar will post 21.73 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

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

Caterpillar Increases Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, August 20th. Stockholders of record on Monday, July 22nd will be given a dividend of $1.41 per share. 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 dividend yield of 1.70%. Caterpillar’s dividend payout ratio is presently 23.48%.

Insider Transactions at Caterpillar

In related news, insider Cheryl H. Johnson sold 1,508 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Thursday, May 30th. The stock was sold at an average price of $340.00, for a total transaction of $512,720.00. Following the sale, the insider now owns 20,023 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $6,807,820. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available through the SEC website. In related news, insider Cheryl H. Johnson sold 1,508 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Thursday, May 30th. The stock was sold at an average price of $340.00, for a total transaction of $512,720.00. Following the sale, the insider now owns 20,023 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $6,807,820. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available through the SEC website. Also, insider Lange Bob De sold 21,847 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Monday, May 13th. The shares were sold at an average price of $356.90, for a total value of $7,797,194.30. Following the sale, the insider now directly owns 71,115 shares in the company, valued at approximately $25,380,943.50. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Corporate insiders own 0.33% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Caterpillar

Institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the business. Waterway Wealth Management LLC acquired a new stake in Caterpillar in the fourth quarter worth about $352,000. Farmers Trust Co. boosted its holdings in Caterpillar by 2.7% in the fourth quarter. Farmers Trust Co. now owns 4,490 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $1,328,000 after acquiring an additional 120 shares in the last quarter. Firethorn Wealth Partners LLC raised its stake in shares of Caterpillar by 19.4% in the fourth quarter. Firethorn Wealth Partners LLC now owns 1,825 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $540,000 after purchasing an additional 296 shares during the last quarter. Axxcess Wealth Management LLC raised its stake in shares of Caterpillar by 20.0% in the fourth 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. Finally, Rise Advisors LLC raised its stake in shares of Caterpillar by 7.8% in the fourth quarter. Rise Advisors LLC now owns 1,074 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $318,000 after purchasing an additional 78 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds 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.