Citigroup Has Lowered Expectations for Caterpillar (NYSE:CAT) Stock Price

Caterpillar (NYSE:CAT) had its price target cut by Citigroup from $445.00 to $435.00 in a research note published on Thursday, Benzinga reports. They currently have a buy rating on the industrial products company’s stock.

Other research analysts have also recently issued research reports about the company. Robert W. Baird increased their price objective on Caterpillar from $299.00 to $300.00 and gave the stock an “underperform” rating in a research note on Thursday. Morgan Stanley downgraded Caterpillar from an “equal weight” rating to an “underweight” rating and dropped their price target for the stock from $349.00 to $332.00 in a research report on Monday, October 14th. Truist Financial upped their price objective on shares of Caterpillar from $399.00 to $456.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Wednesday, October 9th. StockNews.com downgraded shares of Caterpillar from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Tuesday, September 24th. Finally, Evercore ISI lowered their price target on shares of Caterpillar from $338.00 to $321.00 and set an “in-line” rating for the company in a research report on Monday, August 19th. Three equities research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, nine have given a hold rating and seven have issued a buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, Caterpillar currently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $357.56.

Caterpillar Stock Down 0.8 %

NYSE:CAT opened at $376.20 on Thursday. The stock has a fifty day simple moving average of $371.78 and a 200-day simple moving average of $351.32. The company has a current ratio of 1.40, a quick ratio of 0.78 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.33. The company has a market cap of $182.42 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 17.44, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.86 and a beta of 1.10. Caterpillar has a twelve month low of $223.76 and a twelve month high of $403.60.

Caterpillar (NYSE:CAT) last released its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, October 30th. The industrial products company reported $5.17 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $5.33 by ($0.16). The company had revenue of $16.11 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $16.37 billion. Caterpillar had a net margin of 16.26% and a return on equity of 59.09%. Caterpillar’s quarterly revenue was down 4.2% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period last year, the firm earned $5.52 earnings per share. Analysts anticipate that Caterpillar will post 21.88 EPS for the current year.

Caterpillar Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, November 20th. Investors of record on Monday, October 21st will be given a dividend of $1.41 per share. This represents a $5.64 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.50%. The ex-dividend date is Monday, October 21st. Caterpillar’s dividend payout ratio is currently 26.15%.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other news, insider Anthony D. Fassino sold 3,185 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Friday, August 30th. The shares were sold at an average price of $351.36, for a total transaction of $1,119,081.60. Following the transaction, the insider now owns 33,442 shares in the company, valued at $11,750,181.12. This represents a 0.00 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available through this hyperlink. In related news, Director Gerald Johnson acquired 100 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, September 4th. The shares were purchased at an average cost of $338.59 per share, with a total value of $33,859.00. Following the completion of the acquisition, the director now directly owns 2,842 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $962,272.78. This represents a 0.00 % increase in their ownership of the stock. The acquisition was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through the SEC website. Also, insider Anthony D. Fassino sold 3,185 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Friday, August 30th. The stock was sold at an average price of $351.36, for a total value of $1,119,081.60. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider now owns 33,442 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $11,750,181.12. This trade represents a 0.00 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Corporate insiders own 0.29% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Hedge funds have recently modified their holdings of the company. Bbjs Financial Advisors LLC purchased a new position in Caterpillar during the 2nd quarter worth approximately $28,000. Financial Connections Group Inc. acquired a new stake in shares of Caterpillar in the second quarter worth $28,000. Fairscale Capital LLC purchased a new position in shares of Caterpillar during the second quarter worth $36,000. POM Investment Strategies LLC lifted its position in Caterpillar by 2,160.0% during the second quarter. POM Investment Strategies LLC now owns 113 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $38,000 after purchasing an additional 108 shares during the period. Finally, TruNorth Capital Management LLC boosted its holdings in Caterpillar by 215.4% in the second quarter. TruNorth Capital Management LLC now owns 123 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $41,000 after purchasing an additional 84 shares during the last quarter. 70.98% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

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.