Caterpillar (NYSE:CAT) Given "Buy" Rating at Truist Financial

Key Points

• Truist Financial reiterated its “Buy” rating on Caterpillar but reduced its price target from $1,100 to $1,027, implying 62.53% upside from the prior close.
• Caterpillar reported quarterly earnings of $7.20 per share, exceeding estimates, while revenue rose 17.3% year over year to $20.68 billion but fell slightly short of expectations.
• Analyst sentiment remains generally positive, with 15 Buy ratings and 12 Hold ratings for a consensus “Moderate Buy” rating and an average price target of $937.08; however, concerns include slowing growth, inventories, tariffs and insider selling.

Caterpillar (NYSE:CAT - Get Free Report)'s stock had its "buy" rating restated by research analysts at Truist Financial in a note issued to investors on Friday, Benzinga reports. They presently have a $1,027.00 price objective on the industrial products company's stock, down from their prior price objective of $1,100.00. Truist Financial's price objective would suggest a potential upside of 62.53% from the stock's previous close.

A number of other analysts have also weighed in on CAT. Oppenheimer restated an "outperform" rating and set a $1,009.00 price objective on shares of Caterpillar in a research note on Thursday. Citigroup cut their price objective on shares of Caterpillar from $1,100.00 to $950.00 and set a "buy" rating for the company in a report on Monday, October 12th. DA Davidson lifted their price objective on Caterpillar from $845.00 to $882.00 and gave the stock a "neutral" rating in a research note on Thursday, August 6th. Royal Bank Of Canada lifted their target price on Caterpillar from $877.00 to $897.00 and gave the stock a "sector perform" rating in a report on Wednesday, August 5th. Finally, Zacks Research downgraded Caterpillar from a "strong-buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a report on Monday, October 5th. Fifteen research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and twelve have given a Hold rating to the company's stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average price target of $937.08.

Caterpillar Price Performance

NYSE CAT traded down $15.49 during trading hours on Friday, reaching $631.90. 1,912,802 shares of the stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 2,842,631. The company has a market cap of $290.47 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 27.20, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.22 and a beta of 1.58. The stock has a 50 day simple moving average of $787.07 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $807.56. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.65, a current ratio of 1.37 and a quick ratio of 0.85. Caterpillar has a 1 year low of $537.08 and a 1 year high of $1,073.46.

Caterpillar (NYSE:CAT - Get Free Report) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, October 29th. The industrial products company reported $7.20 EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $7.06 by $0.14. The firm had revenue of $20.68 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $20.76 billion. Caterpillar had a net margin of 14.51% and a return on equity of 55.53%. The business's revenue was up 17.3% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period last year, the firm posted $4.95 earnings per share. On average, analysts predict that Caterpillar will post 27.74 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Insider Transactions at Caterpillar

In other news, CEO Joseph E. Creed sold 32,401 shares of the company's stock in a transaction dated Friday, August 28th. The stock was sold at an average price of $808.98, for a total value of $26,211,760.98. Following the sale, the chief executive officer owned 34,555 shares in the company, valued at $27,954,303.90. This represents a 48.39% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through the SEC website. 0.33% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Institutional Trading of Caterpillar

Several institutional investors have recently modified their holdings of the stock. BlackRock Inc. acquired a new position in shares of Caterpillar during the 2nd quarter valued at about $40,457,153,000. State Street Corp boosted its position in Caterpillar by 4.0% in the 2nd quarter. State Street Corp now owns 36,276,960 shares of the industrial products company's stock valued at $37,120,529,000 after buying an additional 1,396,356 shares during the period. Bank of America Corp DE purchased a new position in shares of Caterpillar in the 2nd quarter valued at about $5,818,150,000. Bank of New York Mellon Corp acquired a new position in Caterpillar during the 2nd quarter worth approximately $3,192,710,000. Finally, Legal & General Group Plc purchased a new stake in shares of Caterpillar during the 2nd quarter worth $2,783,451,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 70.98% of the company's stock.

Key Headlines Impacting Caterpillar

Here are the key news stories impacting Caterpillar this week:

• Positive Sentiment: Third-quarter sales and revenues rose 17% year over year to approximately $20.7 billion, while adjusted profit per share of $7.20 exceeded analysts’ expectations. Higher volume, pricing and operating leverage lifted profitability. Caterpillar Reports Third-Quarter 2026 Results
• Positive Sentiment: Demand tied to data centers remains a key growth driver: power-generation sales increased about 30%, and Caterpillar reported a record backlog of roughly $78 billion extending into 2029–2030. Management also returned $2 billion through share repurchases and dividends during the quarter. Caterpillar posts highest sales quarter ever
• Neutral Sentiment: Some analysts see substantial long-term upside because the backlog could support revenue growth and margin expansion, with consensus estimates calling for approximately 17.8% revenue growth in fiscal 2026 and 10.8% in fiscal 2027. However, the stock’s valuation leaves limited room for execution setbacks.
• Negative Sentiment: Revenue of $20.68 billion came in below the approximately $20.76 billion consensus estimate, and quarterly growth slowed from 24% in the prior quarter. Investors had expected Caterpillar to raise its annual outlook, but management maintained its existing forecast and characterized fourth-quarter revenue growth as moderate. Caterpillar Sales Jump, But Wall Street Wanted More
• Negative Sentiment: Rising inventories, tariff-related costs and concerns about the pace of backlog conversion are adding pressure to the outlook. After a major prior rally, investors appear to be taking profits in AI-linked industrial stocks and demanding greater valuation support. Reports also indicate substantially more insider selling than buying in recent months.

Caterpillar Company Profile

Caterpillar Inc is a manufacturer of construction, mining, and industrial equipment. Its product portfolio includes excavators, bulldozers, wheel loaders, motor graders, articulated trucks, and other machinery used in construction, infrastructure development, mining, quarrying, forestry, and related industries. The company also produces diesel and natural gas engines, industrial gas turbines, generator sets, and other power-generation and transportation equipment.

Caterpillar operates through businesses focused on construction industries, resource industries, and energy and transportation.

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