Caterpillar Inc. (NYSE:CAT - Free Report) - Investment analysts at DA Davidson lifted their FY2024 EPS estimates for Caterpillar in a research report issued to clients and investors on Tuesday, April 30th. DA Davidson analyst M. Shlisky now anticipates that the industrial products company will post earnings per share of $22.25 for the year, up from their prior forecast of $21.19. The consensus estimate for Caterpillar's current full-year earnings is $21.60 per share.
Several other research analysts also recently commented on the stock. StockNews.com downgraded shares of Caterpillar from a "strong-buy" rating to a "buy" rating in a research note on Tuesday, February 20th. TD Cowen raised their target price on shares of Caterpillar from $338.00 to $340.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a report on Friday, April 26th. Citigroup raised their target price on shares of Caterpillar from $255.00 to $340.00 and gave the stock a "neutral" rating in a report on Monday, February 12th. Wells Fargo & Company raised their target price on shares of Caterpillar from $290.00 to $325.00 and gave the stock an "equal weight" rating in a report on Tuesday, February 6th. Finally, Stifel Nicolaus cut shares of Caterpillar from a "buy" rating to a "hold" rating and raised their target price for the stock from $293.00 to $350.00 in a report on Friday, April 26th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, ten have issued a hold rating and eight have given a buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, the company has a consensus rating of "Hold" and a consensus price target of $323.35.
Check Out Our Latest Stock Analysis on Caterpillar
Caterpillar Price Performance
Shares of CAT stock traded up $4.37 during trading hours on Thursday, hitting $335.44. 2,393,871 shares of the company's stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 2,524,357. The company has a market capitalization of $164.05 billion, a PE ratio of 14.95, a PEG ratio of 1.44 and a beta of 1.19. Caterpillar has a 12-month low of $205.60 and a 12-month high of $382.01. The business's 50 day simple moving average is $351.36 and its 200-day simple moving average is $302.43. The company has a current ratio of 1.35, a quick ratio of 0.83 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.41.
Caterpillar (NYSE:CAT - Get Free Report) last announced its earnings results on Thursday, April 25th. The industrial products company reported $5.60 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts' consensus estimates of $5.12 by $0.48. The business had revenue of $15.80 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $16.07 billion. Caterpillar had a net margin of 16.79% and a return on equity of 58.61%.
Caterpillar Announces Dividend
The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, May 20th. Shareholders of record on Monday, April 22nd will be given a $1.30 dividend. This represents a $5.20 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.55%. The ex-dividend date is Friday, April 19th. Caterpillar's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 23.48%.
Insider Activity
In other news, insider Lange Bob De sold 21,194 shares of the company's stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, February 7th. The shares were sold at an average price of $325.52, for a total transaction of $6,899,070.88. Following the completion of the sale, the insider now owns 61,092 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $19,886,667.84. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through the SEC website. In related news, insider Lange Bob De sold 21,194 shares of the business's stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, February 7th. The stock was sold at an average price of $325.52, for a total transaction of $6,899,070.88. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider now directly owns 61,092 shares in the company, valued at approximately $19,886,667.84. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available at this hyperlink. Also, CFO Andrew R. J. Bonfield sold 10,000 shares of the business's stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, February 2nd. The shares were sold at an average price of $310.10, for a total value of $3,101,000.00. Following the transaction, the chief financial officer now owns 57,317 shares of the company's stock, valued at $17,774,001.70. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold 35,769 shares of company stock valued at $11,508,906 in the last quarter. 0.33% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.
Institutional Inflows and Outflows
Several hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the business. Jennison Associates LLC boosted its stake in Caterpillar by 26.4% in the 1st quarter. Jennison Associates LLC now owns 267,888 shares of the industrial products company's stock worth $98,162,000 after purchasing an additional 55,935 shares during the period. Pacific Wealth Strategies Group Inc. boosted its stake in Caterpillar by 3.4% in the 1st quarter. Pacific Wealth Strategies Group Inc. now owns 5,721 shares of the industrial products company's stock worth $2,096,000 after purchasing an additional 186 shares during the period. FinTrust Capital Advisors LLC boosted its stake in Caterpillar by 15.6% in the 1st quarter. FinTrust Capital Advisors LLC now owns 5,060 shares of the industrial products company's stock worth $1,854,000 after purchasing an additional 682 shares during the period. Daiwa Securities Group Inc. boosted its stake in Caterpillar by 4.2% in the 1st quarter. Daiwa Securities Group Inc. now owns 127,600 shares of the industrial products company's stock worth $46,756,000 after purchasing an additional 5,122 shares during the period. Finally, Graypoint LLC boosted its stake in Caterpillar by 2.5% in the 1st quarter. Graypoint LLC now owns 11,293 shares of the industrial products company's stock worth $4,138,000 after purchasing an additional 278 shares during the period. 70.98% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.
About Caterpillar
(
Get Free Report)
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.
See Also
Before you consider Caterpillar, you'll want to hear this.
MarketBeat keeps track of Wall Street's top-rated and best performing research analysts and the stocks they recommend to their clients on a daily basis. MarketBeat has identified the five stocks that top analysts are quietly whispering to their clients to buy now before the broader market catches on... and Caterpillar wasn't on the list.
While Caterpillar currently has a "Hold" rating among analysts, top-rated analysts believe these five stocks are better buys.
View The Five Stocks Here
Thinking about investing in Meta, Roblox, or Unity? Click the link to learn what streetwise investors need to know about the metaverse and public markets before making an investment.
Get This Free Report
