Caterpillar (NYSE:CAT) Stock Price Expected to Rise, Sanford C. Bernstein Analyst Says

Caterpillar (NYSE:CAT - Get Free Report) had its target price lifted by Sanford C. Bernstein from $304.00 to $432.00 in a report issued on Monday,BayStreet.CA reports. Sanford C. Bernstein's price objective points to a potential upside of 3.30% from the stock's current price.

Other research analysts also recently issued reports about the stock. Melius Research raised shares of Caterpillar from a "hold" rating to a "strong-buy" rating and set a $500.00 price objective for the company in a report on Wednesday, July 9th. Evercore ISI cut their price target on shares of Caterpillar from $375.00 to $373.00 and set an "in-line" rating for the company in a report on Monday, May 19th. Truist Financial raised their price target on shares of Caterpillar from $396.00 to $414.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a report on Monday, June 23rd. Oppenheimer raised shares of Caterpillar from a "market perform" rating to an "outperform" rating and set a $395.00 price target for the company in a report on Thursday, May 1st. Finally, Citigroup reissued a "buy" rating and issued a $420.00 price target (up from $370.00) on shares of Caterpillar in a report on Tuesday, June 24th. Seven equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, ten have given a buy rating and two have given a strong buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, Caterpillar has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average price target of $412.33.

Caterpillar Stock Up 1.3%

NYSE:CAT traded up $5.34 on Monday, hitting $418.22. The stock had a trading volume of 2,444,327 shares, compared to its average volume of 2,519,556. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.43, a quick ratio of 0.77 and a current ratio of 1.32. The stock has a market cap of $197.00 billion, a P/E ratio of 20.38, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.68 and a beta of 1.38. Caterpillar has a 1 year low of $267.30 and a 1 year high of $419.69. The firm's fifty day simple moving average is $365.97 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $349.05.

Caterpillar (NYSE:CAT - Get Free Report) last released its earnings results on Wednesday, April 30th. The industrial products company reported $4.25 earnings per share for the quarter, missing analysts' consensus estimates of $4.35 by ($0.10). Caterpillar had a net margin of 15.71% and a return on equity of 53.77%. The company had revenue of $14.25 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $14.64 billion. During the same period in the prior year, the company earned $5.60 earnings per share. The firm's revenue was down 9.8% on a year-over-year basis. Analysts predict that Caterpillar will post 19.86 earnings per share for the current year.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other Caterpillar news, Director David Maclennan acquired 375 shares of the stock in a transaction on Wednesday, May 7th. The stock was acquired at an average price of $320.70 per share, for a total transaction of $120,262.50. Following the completion of the transaction, the director directly owned 6,653 shares of the company's stock, valued at $2,133,617.10. This trade represents a 5.97% increase in their ownership of the stock. The purchase was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this hyperlink. 0.33% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Caterpillar

Several institutional investors have recently bought and sold shares of CAT. Pacific Point Advisors LLC bought a new stake in shares of Caterpillar in the 4th quarter worth about $579,000. Brighton Jones LLC lifted its holdings in shares of Caterpillar by 51.5% in the 4th quarter. Brighton Jones LLC now owns 7,409 shares of the industrial products company's stock worth $2,688,000 after acquiring an additional 2,519 shares during the last quarter. Proficio Capital Partners LLC lifted its holdings in shares of Caterpillar by 38.3% in the 4th quarter. Proficio Capital Partners LLC now owns 2,218 shares of the industrial products company's stock worth $805,000 after acquiring an additional 614 shares during the last quarter. one8zero8 LLC bought a new stake in shares of Caterpillar in the 4th quarter worth about $663,000. Finally, Patten & Patten Inc. TN lifted its holdings in shares of Caterpillar by 2.6% in the 4th quarter. Patten & Patten Inc. TN now owns 3,924 shares of the industrial products company's stock worth $1,423,000 after acquiring an additional 100 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors own 70.98% of the company's stock.

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.