DA Davidson Comments on Caterpillar's Q3 Earnings (NYSE:CAT)

Key Points

• DA Davidson has lowered its Q3 2025 EPS estimate for Caterpillar from $4.84 to $4.66, maintaining a "Neutral" rating with a price target of $388.00.
• Caterpillar's latest quarterly earnings report revealed $4.72 EPS, which missed analyst expectations, coupled with a revenue of $16.57 billion that exceeded estimates.
• The company has increased its quarterly dividend from $1.41 to $1.51, yielding 1.5% with a payout ratio of 30.72%.

Caterpillar Inc. (NYSE:CAT - Free Report) - DA Davidson dropped their Q3 2025 EPS estimates for shares of Caterpillar in a report released on Wednesday, September 3rd. DA Davidson analyst M. Shlisky now expects that the industrial products company will post earnings of $4.66 per share for the quarter, down from their prior forecast of $4.84. DA Davidson has a "Neutral" rating and a $388.00 price objective on the stock. The consensus estimate for Caterpillar's current full-year earnings is $19.86 per share. DA Davidson also issued estimates for Caterpillar's FY2025 earnings at $17.87 EPS.

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

A number of other research firms have also issued reports on CAT. UBS Group upgraded shares of Caterpillar from a "sell" rating to a "neutral" rating and boosted their price target for the company from $272.00 to $357.00 in a report on Friday, May 16th. Barclays boosted their price target 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. Melius Research upgraded shares of Caterpillar from a "hold" rating to a "strong-buy" rating and set a $500.00 price target on the stock in a report on Wednesday, July 9th. Melius raised shares of Caterpillar from a "hold" rating to a "buy" rating and set a $500.00 price objective on the stock in a research report on Wednesday, July 9th. Finally, Sanford C. Bernstein reaffirmed a "market perform" rating on shares of Caterpillar in a research report on Monday, July 14th. Two investment analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, eleven have issued a Buy rating and five have given a Hold rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, Caterpillar presently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average price target of $457.20.

Caterpillar Stock Down 0.3%

NYSE CAT opened at $414.73 on Thursday. 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's 50 day simple moving average is $415.51 and its 200 day simple moving average is $361.45. Caterpillar has a 12 month low of $267.30 and a 12 month high of $441.15. The company has a market capitalization of $194.29 billion, a P/E ratio of 21.10, a PEG ratio of 2.53 and a beta of 1.41.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Institutional investors and hedge funds have recently bought and sold shares of the company. Kilter Group LLC acquired a new position in Caterpillar during the 2nd quarter worth $27,000. Mid American Wealth Advisory Group Inc. acquired a new position in Caterpillar during the 2nd quarter worth $28,000. Compass Financial Services Inc lifted its position in Caterpillar by 49.2% during the 1st quarter. Compass Financial Services Inc now owns 94 shares of the industrial products company's stock worth $31,000 after acquiring an additional 31 shares during the last quarter. Family Legacy Financial Solutions LLC acquired a new position in Caterpillar during the 2nd quarter worth $32,000. Finally, RiverPark Advisors LLC bought a new stake in Caterpillar in the 2nd quarter valued at $32,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 70.98% of the company's stock.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In related news, Chairman Donald J. Umpleby III sold 17,168 shares of the firm's 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 transaction, the chairman directly owned 482,505 shares in the company, valued at approximately $199,211,839.35. This trade represents a 3.44% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available through this link. Also, Director Susan C. Schwab sold 2,324 shares of Caterpillar stock in a transaction on Friday, August 15th. The stock was sold at an average price of $410.00, for a total transaction of $952,840.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the director owned 6,917 shares in the company, valued at $2,835,970. This trade represents a 25.15% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold 21,653 shares of company stock valued at $8,943,642 over the last ninety days. Corporate insiders own 0.33% of the company's stock.

Caterpillar Increases Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, August 20th. Shareholders of record on Monday, July 21st were given a $1.51 dividend. This is a positive change from Caterpillar's previous quarterly dividend of $1.41. This represents a $6.04 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.5%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Monday, July 21st. Caterpillar's payout ratio is presently 30.72%.

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.

This instant news alert was generated by narrative science technology and financial data from MarketBeat in order to provide readers with the fastest and most accurate reporting. This story was reviewed by MarketBeat's editorial team prior to publication. Please send any questions or comments about this story to contact@marketbeat.com.