Caterpillar (NYSE:CAT) Given New $360.00 Price Target at HSBC

Caterpillar (NYSE:CAT - Free Report) had its price target boosted by HSBC from $330.00 to $360.00 in a research report sent to investors on Tuesday, Benzinga reports. They currently have a hold rating on the industrial products company's stock.

A number of other equities research analysts have also issued reports on the company. Wells Fargo & Company upped their target price on Caterpillar from $290.00 to $325.00 and gave the company an equal weight rating in a research note on Tuesday, February 6th. Morgan Stanley started coverage on Caterpillar in a research note on Monday, January 8th. They set an equal weight rating and a $270.00 price target on the stock. Truist Financial started coverage on Caterpillar in a research note on Thursday, March 14th. They set a buy rating and a $390.00 price target on the stock. StockNews.com lowered Caterpillar from a strong-buy rating to a buy rating in a research note on Tuesday, February 20th. Finally, Stifel Nicolaus lowered Caterpillar from a buy rating to a hold rating and increased their price target for the stock from $293.00 to $350.00 in a research note on Friday. One research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, ten have issued a hold rating and eight have given a buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has a consensus rating of Hold and an average price target of $323.35.

Caterpillar Stock Performance

NYSE CAT traded down $15.23 on Tuesday, hitting $334.57. 4,189,127 shares of the company's stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 2,513,906. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.41, a current ratio of 1.35 and a quick ratio of 0.83. The firm's 50-day moving average price is $351.08 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $302.22. Caterpillar has a fifty-two week low of $205.60 and a fifty-two week high of $382.01. The firm has a market cap of $167.08 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 15.10, a P/E/G ratio of 1.52 and a beta of 1.17.

Caterpillar (NYSE:CAT - Get Free Report) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, April 25th. The industrial products company reported $5.60 EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $5.12 by $0.48. Caterpillar had a return on equity of 58.61% and a net margin of 16.79%. The business had revenue of $15.80 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $16.07 billion. On average, research analysts expect that Caterpillar will post 21.44 EPS for the current year.

Caterpillar Announces Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, May 20th. Stockholders of record on Monday, April 22nd will be issued a dividend of $1.30 per share. The ex-dividend date is Friday, April 19th. This represents a $5.20 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.55%. Caterpillar's payout ratio is 23.48%.

Insider Activity at Caterpillar

In related news, CFO Andrew R. J. Bonfield sold 10,000 shares of the stock in a transaction on Friday, February 2nd. The stock was sold at an average price of $310.10, for a total value of $3,101,000.00. Following the completion of the sale, the chief financial officer now directly owns 57,317 shares in the company, valued at approximately $17,774,001.70. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through the SEC website. In related news, CFO Andrew R. J. Bonfield sold 10,000 shares of the stock in a transaction on Friday, February 2nd. The stock was sold at an average price of $310.10, for a total value of $3,101,000.00. Following the completion of the sale, the chief financial officer now directly owns 57,317 shares in the company, valued at approximately $17,774,001.70. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Also, insider Lange Bob De sold 21,194 shares of the stock in a transaction on Wednesday, February 7th. The shares were sold at an average price of $325.52, for a total value 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 $19,886,667.84. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last three months, insiders sold 35,769 shares of company stock worth $11,508,906. Corporate insiders own 0.33% of the company's stock.

Institutional Trading of Caterpillar

Several large investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the stock. Thompson Investment Management Inc. acquired a new stake in shares of Caterpillar during the first quarter valued at about $27,000. Fairman Group LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Caterpillar during the first quarter valued at about $29,000. Partnership Wealth Management LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Caterpillar during the fourth quarter valued at about $26,000. Richardson Financial Services Inc. acquired a new stake in shares of Caterpillar during the fourth quarter valued at about $27,000. Finally, Vima LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Caterpillar during the fourth quarter valued at about $30,000. 70.98% of the stock is currently 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.