Truist Financial Raises Caterpillar (NYSE:CAT) Price Target to $456.00

Caterpillar (NYSE:CAT) had its target price raised by analysts at Truist Financial from $399.00 to $456.00 in a research report issued to clients and investors on Wednesday, Benzinga reports. The firm currently has a “buy” rating on the industrial products company’s stock. Truist Financial’s target price would suggest a potential upside of 15.29% from the company’s current price.

A number of other research analysts have also commented on CAT. StockNews.com lowered Caterpillar from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Tuesday, September 24th. Raymond James initiated coverage on Caterpillar in a research note on Friday, June 28th. They set a “market perform” rating on the stock. Barclays increased their price target on Caterpillar from $315.00 to $335.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a report on Wednesday, August 7th. Citigroup began coverage on Caterpillar in a research report on Wednesday, June 26th. They issued a “buy” rating and a $380.00 price objective on the stock. Finally, UBS Group boosted their price objective on Caterpillar from $270.00 to $285.00 and gave the stock a “sell” rating in a research note on Wednesday, August 7th. Two investment analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, ten have assigned a hold rating and seven have issued a buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, Caterpillar currently has an average rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $343.50.

Caterpillar Stock Performance

Shares of CAT traded up $7.56 during mid-day trading on Wednesday, hitting $395.52. The stock had a trading volume of 690,887 shares, compared to its average volume of 2,654,636. The firm has a market cap of $193.43 billion, a P/E ratio of 17.86, a PEG ratio of 1.73 and a beta of 1.10. The business has a fifty day moving average price of $353.51 and a 200-day moving average price of $348.44. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.39, a current ratio of 1.28 and a quick ratio of 0.78. Caterpillar has a 52 week low of $223.76 and a 52 week high of $401.17.

Caterpillar (NYSE:CAT) last posted its earnings results on Tuesday, August 6th. The industrial products company reported $5.99 EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $5.53 by $0.46. Caterpillar had a return on equity of 59.88% and a net margin of 16.58%. The business had revenue of $16.69 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $16.91 billion. During the same period in the previous year, the business earned $5.55 earnings per share. The firm’s revenue was down 3.6% on a year-over-year basis. On average, equities research analysts expect that Caterpillar will post 21.91 EPS for the current year.

Caterpillar announced that its Board of Directors has approved a share repurchase plan on Wednesday, June 12th that allows the company to repurchase $20.00 billion in shares. This repurchase authorization allows the industrial products company to repurchase up to 12.7% of its shares through open market purchases. Shares repurchase plans are typically a sign that the company’s board believes its shares are undervalued.

Insider Activity

In other news, insider Cheryl H. Johnson sold 1,508 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, July 16th. The shares were sold at an average price of $350.00, for a total transaction of $527,800.00. Following the transaction, the insider now directly owns 18,515 shares in the company, valued at $6,480,250. The trade was a 0.00 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available through this link. In related news, insider Cheryl H. Johnson sold 1,508 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, July 16th. The shares were sold at an average price of $350.00, for a total transaction of $527,800.00. Following the transaction, the insider now owns 18,515 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $6,480,250. This represents a 0.00 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available at the SEC website. Also, Director Gerald Johnson acquired 100 shares of Caterpillar stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, September 4th. The shares were purchased at an average cost of $338.59 per share, for a total transaction of $33,859.00. Following the purchase, the director now directly owns 2,842 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $962,272.78. This trade represents a 0.00 % increase in their position. The disclosure for this purchase can be found here. Over the last three months, insiders sold 7,668 shares of company stock valued at $2,665,760. Insiders own 0.33% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Several hedge funds have recently added to or reduced their stakes in CAT. Vanguard Group Inc. lifted its position in Caterpillar by 0.3% in the 4th quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 48,353,370 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $14,296,641,000 after purchasing an additional 129,216 shares during the last quarter. Fisher Asset Management LLC grew its stake in shares of Caterpillar by 2.2% in the 4th quarter. Fisher Asset Management LLC now owns 8,139,040 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $2,406,471,000 after purchasing an additional 173,108 shares during the last quarter. Legal & General Group Plc grew its stake in shares of Caterpillar by 2.0% in the 2nd quarter. Legal & General Group Plc now owns 3,862,443 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $1,286,582,000 after purchasing an additional 75,973 shares during the last quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP grew its stake in shares of Caterpillar by 5.7% in the 2nd quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP now owns 3,069,840 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $1,022,488,000 after purchasing an additional 165,358 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Ameriprise Financial Inc. increased its position in shares of Caterpillar by 10.4% in the second quarter. Ameriprise Financial Inc. now owns 2,108,817 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $702,431,000 after acquiring an additional 198,123 shares in the last quarter. 70.98% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Caterpillar Company Profile

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.