Caterpillar (NYSE:CAT) Stock Price Up 0.3% Following Analyst Upgrade

Caterpillar Inc. (NYSE:CAT)’s stock price traded up 0.3% during trading on Monday after UBS Group raised their price target on the stock from $285.00 to $295.00. UBS Group currently has a sell rating on the stock. Caterpillar traded as high as $381.48 and last traded at $380.59. 311,941 shares traded hands during mid-day trading, a decline of 88% from the average session volume of 2,613,385 shares. The stock had previously closed at $379.63.

Several other equities analysts have also recently weighed in on the company. Morgan Stanley cut Caterpillar from an “equal weight” rating to an “underweight” rating and lowered their target price for the company from $349.00 to $332.00 in a research note on Monday, October 14th. Evercore ISI lowered their price objective on shares of Caterpillar from $338.00 to $321.00 and set an “in-line” rating on the stock in a research report on Monday, August 19th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. increased their target price on shares of Caterpillar from $435.00 to $500.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research report on Monday, October 14th. Truist Financial lifted their price target on Caterpillar from $399.00 to $456.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Wednesday, October 9th. Finally, Robert W. Baird boosted their target price on shares of Caterpillar from $299.00 to $300.00 and gave the stock an “underperform” rating in a research report on Thursday, October 31st. Three equities research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, nine have assigned a hold rating and seven have given a buy rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock currently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $358.19.

Insider Transactions at Caterpillar

In related news, insider Cheryl H. Johnson sold 2,975 shares of Caterpillar stock in a transaction dated Thursday, August 22nd. The stock was sold at an average price of $342.48, for a total value of $1,018,878.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider now directly owns 15,615 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $5,347,825.20. The trade was a 0.00 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available through the SEC website. In other news, insider Anthony D. Fassino sold 3,185 shares of Caterpillar stock in a transaction on Friday, August 30th. The stock was sold at an average price of $351.36, for a total value of $1,119,081.60. Following the completion of the sale, the insider now directly owns 33,442 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $11,750,181.12. This trade represents a 0.00 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Also, insider Cheryl H. Johnson sold 2,975 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Thursday, August 22nd. The shares were sold at an average price of $342.48, for a total value of $1,018,878.00. Following the transaction, the insider now directly owns 15,615 shares in the company, valued at $5,347,825.20. This trade represents a 0.00 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last quarter, insiders have sold 7,128 shares of company stock worth $2,506,748. Insiders own 0.29% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Trading of Caterpillar

Institutional investors and hedge funds have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Bbjs Financial Advisors LLC acquired a new stake in Caterpillar during the 2nd quarter worth $28,000. Financial Connections Group Inc. acquired a new stake in shares of Caterpillar during the second quarter worth $28,000. Fairscale Capital LLC bought a new stake in Caterpillar in the second quarter valued at about $36,000. Capital Performance Advisors LLP acquired a new position in Caterpillar in the third quarter valued at about $36,000. Finally, POM Investment Strategies LLC boosted its holdings in Caterpillar by 2,160.0% during the second quarter. POM Investment Strategies LLC now owns 113 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $38,000 after buying an additional 108 shares during the last quarter. 70.98% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Caterpillar Price Performance

The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.33, a quick ratio of 0.78 and a current ratio of 1.40. The company has a market capitalization of $182.57 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 17.46, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.85 and a beta of 1.10. The company has a 50-day moving average price of $372.91 and a 200-day moving average price of $351.45.

Caterpillar (NYSE:CAT) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, October 30th. The industrial products company reported $5.17 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $5.33 by ($0.16). The business had revenue of $16.11 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $16.37 billion. Caterpillar had a net margin of 16.26% and a return on equity of 59.09%. Caterpillar’s revenue for the quarter was down 4.2% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm posted $5.52 earnings per share. On average, equities research analysts expect that Caterpillar Inc. will post 21.82 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Caterpillar Dividend Announcement

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, November 20th. Stockholders of record on Monday, October 21st will be issued a $1.41 dividend. This represents a $5.64 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.50%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, October 21st. Caterpillar’s payout ratio is 26.15%.

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.