Caterpillar Inc. (NYSE:CAT) Receives Consensus Rating of "Moderate Buy" from Analysts

Key Points

• Caterpillar Inc. has received a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” from analysts, with an average price target of $457.20 over the next 12 months.
• The company's recent quarterly earnings showed a miss of consensus estimates, reporting $4.72 earnings per share compared to the expected $4.88.
• Insider transactions included significant sales, with Chairman Donald J. Umpleby III selling over 17,000 shares for approximately $7 million.

Shares of Caterpillar Inc. (NYSE:CAT - Get Free Report) have been given an average recommendation of "Moderate Buy" by the eighteen ratings firms that are currently covering the stock, Marketbeat reports. Five investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, eleven have given a buy rating and two have assigned a strong buy rating to the company. The average 12 month price target among brokerages that have issued ratings on the stock in the last year is $457.20.

A number of brokerages recently weighed in on CAT. Oppenheimer dropped their price objective on shares of Caterpillar from $493.00 to $480.00 and set an "outperform" rating for the company in a report on Friday, August 29th. Barclays lifted their price objective on shares of Caterpillar from $383.00 to $425.00 and gave the company an "equal weight" rating in a report on Wednesday, August 6th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. lifted their price objective on shares of Caterpillar from $475.00 to $520.00 and gave the company an "overweight" rating in a report on Wednesday, August 6th. Bank of America lifted their price objective on shares of Caterpillar from $460.00 to $495.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a report on Wednesday, August 6th. Finally, DA Davidson lifted their price target on shares of Caterpillar from $331.00 to $388.00 and gave the stock a "neutral" rating in a research note on Tuesday, July 22nd.

Caterpillar Price Performance

Shares of NYSE CAT opened at $435.62 on Tuesday. The firm has a 50-day simple moving average of $420.93 and a 200-day simple moving average of $366.13. The stock has a market capitalization of $204.08 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 22.16, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.62 and a beta of 1.41. The company has a quick ratio of 0.81, a current ratio of 1.34 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.50. Caterpillar has a 52 week low of $267.30 and a 52 week high of $441.15.

Caterpillar (NYSE:CAT - Get Free Report) last released its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, August 5th. The industrial products company reported $4.72 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $4.88 by ($0.16). Caterpillar had a return on equity of 48.95% and a net margin of 14.95%.The firm had revenue of $16.57 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $16.14 billion. During the same quarter in the previous year, the business posted $5.99 earnings per share. Caterpillar's revenue for the quarter was down .7% on a year-over-year basis. On average, equities analysts predict that Caterpillar will post 19.86 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, Chairman Donald J. Umpleby III sold 17,168 shares of Caterpillar stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, September 2nd. The shares were sold at an average price of $412.87, for a total value of $7,088,152.16. Following the completion of the transaction, the chairman owned 482,505 shares in the company, valued at $199,211,839.35. The trade was a 3.44% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this hyperlink. Also, insider Jason Kaiser sold 2,161 shares of Caterpillar stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, August 11th. The stock was sold at an average price of $417.70, for a total transaction of $902,649.70. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider owned 8,632 shares of the company's stock, valued at $3,605,586.40. This represents a 20.02% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold 21,653 shares of company stock worth $8,943,642 over the last 90 days. 0.33% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Caterpillar

Institutional investors have recently modified their holdings of the business. MIRAE ASSET GLOBAL ETFS HOLDINGS Ltd. increased its holdings in shares of Caterpillar by 9.9% in the 1st quarter. MIRAE ASSET GLOBAL ETFS HOLDINGS Ltd. now owns 78,947 shares of the industrial products company's stock valued at $26,037,000 after acquiring an additional 7,125 shares during the period. Victrix Investment Advisors acquired a new position in Caterpillar in the 4th quarter valued at $2,090,000. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. increased its stake in Caterpillar by 0.5% in the 1st quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. now owns 3,304,448 shares of the industrial products company's stock valued at $1,089,798,000 after buying an additional 15,347 shares during the period. Ransom Advisory Ltd acquired a new position in Caterpillar in the 1st quarter valued at $427,000. Finally, Heartwood Wealth Advisors LLC increased its stake in Caterpillar by 4.2% in the 2nd quarter. Heartwood Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 2,975 shares of the industrial products company's stock valued at $1,155,000 after buying an additional 121 shares during the period. 70.98% of the stock is 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.

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