Caterpillar (NYSE:CAT) Price Target Raised to $517.00 at Bank of America

Key Points

• Bank of America has raised its price target for Caterpillar (NYSE:CAT) from $495.00 to $517.00, signaling a potential upside of 8.33% based on the stock's current price.
• Caterpillar recently reported $4.72 EPS for the quarter, which missed estimates by $0.16, with revenue of $16.57 billion exceeding expectations.
• The stock has a current rating of 'Moderate Buy' among analysts, with a consensus price target of $464.33, reflecting a mix of buy and hold ratings from a number of analysts.

Caterpillar (NYSE:CAT - Get Free Report) had its price target raised by investment analysts at Bank of America from $495.00 to $517.00 in a research note issued to investors on Monday,MarketScreener reports. The brokerage currently has a "buy" rating on the industrial products company's stock. Bank of America's price target points to a potential upside of 8.33% from the stock's current price.

CAT has been the topic of a number of other reports. Sanford C. Bernstein reiterated a "market perform" rating on shares of Caterpillar in a report on Monday, July 14th. Jefferies Financial Group restated a "buy" rating and issued a $500.00 price target on shares of Caterpillar in a research note on Friday, August 29th. Citigroup reiterated a "buy" rating on shares of Caterpillar in a research note on Tuesday. Evercore ISI raised shares of Caterpillar from an "in-line" rating to an "outperform" rating and set a $476.00 target price for the company in a research note on Tuesday, August 19th. Finally, Robert W. Baird increased their price target on shares of Caterpillar from $495.00 to $540.00 and gave the company an "outperform" rating in a research note on Wednesday, September 17th. Two analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, eleven have assigned a Buy rating and five have assigned a Hold rating to the company's stock. According to data from MarketBeat, Caterpillar presently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus price target of $464.33.

Caterpillar Stock Up 1.1%

Shares of Caterpillar stock opened at $477.26 on Monday. Caterpillar has a 1 year low of $267.30 and a 1 year high of $473.24. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.50, a current ratio of 1.34 and a quick ratio of 0.81. The company has a market capitalization of $223.59 billion, a P/E ratio of 24.27, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.84 and a beta of 1.41. The business has a 50-day moving average of $426.53 and a two-hundred day moving average of $370.38.

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

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, insider Jason Kaiser sold 2,161 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, August 11th. The shares were sold at an average price of $417.70, for a total value 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 sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this link. Also, Chairman Donald J. Umpleby III sold 17,168 shares of the stock in a transaction 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 of the company's stock, valued at $199,211,839.35. The trade was a 3.44% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold a total of 21,653 shares of company stock worth $8,943,642 in the last three months. 0.33% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Institutional Trading of Caterpillar

Institutional investors have recently bought and sold shares of the company. Pacific Point Advisors LLC acquired a new position in Caterpillar in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $579,000. Brighton Jones LLC boosted its stake in Caterpillar by 51.5% during the fourth 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 in the last quarter. GTS Securities LLC grew its holdings in Caterpillar by 112.0% in the fourth quarter. GTS Securities LLC now owns 1,764 shares of the industrial products company's stock worth $640,000 after purchasing an additional 16,472 shares during the period. Ascent Group LLC increased its stake in Caterpillar by 44.0% in the fourth quarter. Ascent Group LLC now owns 1,639 shares of the industrial products company's stock valued at $595,000 after purchasing an additional 501 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Capital A Wealth Management LLC acquired a new position in shares of Caterpillar during the fourth quarter valued at about $68,000. Institutional investors 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.

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