Caterpillar Inc. (NYSE:CAT) Given Consensus Rating of “Hold” by Analysts

Shares of Caterpillar Inc. (NYSE:CAT) have received an average recommendation of “Hold” from the seventeen brokerages that are presently covering the stock, MarketBeat reports. Four research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, six have given a hold rating and seven have assigned a buy rating to the company. The average twelve-month price target among brokerages that have issued a report on the stock in the last year is $384.33.

Several research analysts recently weighed in on the stock. Robert W. Baird boosted their target price on shares of Caterpillar from $299.00 to $300.00 and gave the company an “underperform” rating in a research note on Thursday, October 31st. StockNews.com downgraded shares of Caterpillar from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Thursday. Bank of America upped their price target on Caterpillar from $376.00 to $434.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Monday, September 30th. Jefferies Financial Group lifted their price objective on Caterpillar from $455.00 to $475.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Friday, December 6th. Finally, Citigroup raised their price target on shares of Caterpillar from $435.00 to $460.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Monday, December 9th.

Caterpillar Stock Down 0.6 %

CAT stock opened at $360.75 on Thursday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.33, a current ratio of 1.40 and a quick ratio of 0.86. The company’s 50 day simple moving average is $383.04 and its 200-day simple moving average is $365.03. Caterpillar has a 12 month low of $276.94 and a 12 month high of $418.50. The firm has a market capitalization of $174.17 billion, a PE ratio of 16.72, a P/E/G ratio of 1.92 and a beta of 1.13.

Caterpillar (NYSE:CAT) last announced its earnings results on Wednesday, October 30th. The industrial products company reported $5.17 EPS for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $5.33 by ($0.16). Caterpillar had a net margin of 16.26% and a return on equity of 59.09%. The company had revenue of $16.11 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $16.37 billion. During the same quarter last year, the company posted $5.52 EPS. Caterpillar’s quarterly revenue was down 4.2% compared to the same quarter last year. Equities analysts expect that Caterpillar will post 21.68 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Caterpillar Dividend Announcement

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, February 20th. Investors of record on Tuesday, January 21st will be issued a $1.41 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Tuesday, January 21st. This represents a $5.64 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.56%. Caterpillar’s dividend payout ratio is presently 26.15%.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In related news, Director Daniel M. Dickinson sold 1,300 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, November 6th. The shares were sold at an average price of $418.00, for a total transaction of $543,400.00. Following the sale, the director now owns 4,976 shares in the company, valued at $2,079,968. This represents a 20.71 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this hyperlink. Also, CAO William E. Schaupp sold 968 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, November 1st. The shares were sold at an average price of $380.98, for a total value of $368,788.64. Following the transaction, the chief accounting officer now directly owns 1,686 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $642,332.28. This trade represents a 36.47 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold a total of 23,868 shares of company stock valued at $9,679,489 in the last ninety days. Corporate insiders own 0.29% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

A number of hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in CAT. Fairscale Capital LLC bought a new stake in Caterpillar in the second quarter valued at $36,000. Capital Performance Advisors LLP acquired a new stake in shares of Caterpillar in the 3rd quarter worth about $36,000. Kimelman & Baird LLC lifted its position in Caterpillar by 42.9% in the 3rd quarter. Kimelman & Baird LLC now owns 100 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $39,000 after purchasing an additional 30 shares during the last quarter. HWG Holdings LP acquired a new position in Caterpillar during the 2nd quarter valued at about $54,000. Finally, SOA Wealth Advisors LLC. grew its position in Caterpillar by 47.2% in the 3rd quarter. SOA Wealth Advisors LLC. now owns 156 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $61,000 after purchasing an additional 50 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds 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.