Caterpillar (NYSE:CAT) Cut to “Hold” at StockNews.com

Caterpillar (NYSE:CAT) was downgraded by equities research analysts at StockNews.com from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a report released on Friday.

Other analysts have also recently issued reports about the stock. Robert W. Baird lifted their target price on shares of Caterpillar from $299.00 to $300.00 and gave the stock an “underperform” rating in a research note on Thursday, October 31st. Citigroup lowered their price objective on Caterpillar from $460.00 to $420.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a research report on Tuesday. Evercore ISI upgraded Caterpillar from an “underperform” rating to an “in-line” rating and set a $365.00 target price on the stock in a research report on Monday. Bank of America lifted their price target on Caterpillar from $376.00 to $434.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Monday, September 30th. Finally, Morgan Stanley lowered shares of Caterpillar from an “equal weight” rating to an “underweight” rating and cut their price objective for the stock from $349.00 to $332.00 in a report on Monday, October 14th. Three equities research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, eight have issued a hold rating and seven have issued a buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, the stock has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $380.60.

Caterpillar Stock Performance

NYSE CAT opened at $380.85 on Friday. The company has a quick ratio of 0.86, a current ratio of 1.40 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.33. The stock has a market cap of $183.87 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 17.66, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.72 and a beta of 1.13. Caterpillar has a fifty-two week low of $276.94 and a fifty-two week high of $418.50. The business has a fifty day moving average of $380.24 and a 200-day moving average of $366.36.

Caterpillar (NYSE:CAT) last released its earnings results on Wednesday, October 30th. The industrial products company reported $5.17 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $5.33 by ($0.16). The firm had revenue of $16.11 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations 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% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter last year, the company posted $5.52 earnings per share. As a group, analysts predict that Caterpillar will post 21.68 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Insider Buying and Selling at Caterpillar

In other news, insider Cheryl H. Johnson sold 2,664 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Monday, November 4th. The stock was sold at an average price of $378.84, for a total value of $1,009,229.76. Following the completion of the sale, the insider now owns 12,951 shares in the company, valued at approximately $4,906,356.84. This trade represents a 17.06 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this link. Also, CAO William E. Schaupp sold 968 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, November 1st. The stock was 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 in the company, 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 have sold 23,868 shares of company stock valued at $9,679,489 over the last three months. 0.29% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Caterpillar

A number of large investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. International Assets Investment Management LLC boosted its position in Caterpillar by 39,534.0% in the 3rd quarter. International Assets Investment Management LLC now owns 2,136,667 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $8,356,930,000 after buying an additional 2,131,276 shares during the last quarter. Altshuler Shaham Ltd boosted its holdings in Caterpillar by 3,319.7% in the second quarter. Altshuler Shaham Ltd now owns 275,011 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $91,606,000 after purchasing an additional 266,969 shares during the last quarter. Zurich Insurance Group Ltd FI grew its stake in Caterpillar by 4,018.6% during the 3rd quarter. Zurich Insurance Group Ltd FI now owns 255,355 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $99,874,000 after purchasing an additional 249,155 shares in the last quarter. Fisher Asset Management LLC increased its holdings in Caterpillar by 2.3% during the 3rd quarter. Fisher Asset Management LLC now owns 8,952,632 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $3,501,554,000 after purchasing an additional 205,012 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Caisse DE Depot ET Placement DU Quebec raised its position in shares of Caterpillar by 34.4% in the 3rd quarter. Caisse DE Depot ET Placement DU Quebec now owns 782,133 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $305,908,000 after purchasing an additional 200,210 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.