Caterpillar Inc. (NYSE:CAT) Receives $478.20 Average Target Price from Brokerages

Caterpillar Inc. (NYSE:CAT) has been assigned an average rating of “Moderate Buy” from the twenty analysts that are covering the stock, MarketBeat Ratings reports. Five equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, thirteen have given a buy rating and two have assigned a strong buy rating to the company. The average 12 month price target among brokerages that have updated their coverage on the stock in the last year is $510.60.

Several equities analysts have recently weighed in on CAT shares. Jefferies Financial Group increased their price target on Caterpillar from $500.00 to $570.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Wednesday, October 8th. Evercore ISI raised Caterpillar from an “in-line” rating to an “outperform” rating and set a $476.00 target price on the stock in a report on Tuesday, August 19th. Truist Financial raised their target price on Caterpillar from $507.00 to $582.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Wednesday, October 8th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. raised their target price on Caterpillar from $505.00 to $650.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a report on Tuesday. Finally, Barclays raised their target price on Caterpillar from $425.00 to $485.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a report on Friday.

Caterpillar Price Performance

NYSE CAT opened at $527.41 on Friday. The business’s fifty day moving average price is $453.38 and its 200-day moving average price is $390.54. The stock has a market capitalization of $247.08 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 26.83, a PEG ratio of 3.09 and a beta of 1.46. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.50, a current ratio of 1.34 and a quick ratio of 0.81. Caterpillar has a 1-year low of $267.30 and a 1-year high of $544.99.

Caterpillar (NYSE:CAT) last released its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, August 5th. The industrial products company reported $4.72 earnings per share for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $4.88 by ($0.16). The firm had revenue of $16.57 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $16.14 billion. Caterpillar had a net margin of 14.95% and a return on equity of 48.95%. Caterpillar’s quarterly revenue was down .7% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the previous year, the company earned $5.99 earnings per share. On average, equities analysts predict that Caterpillar will post 19.86 earnings per share for the current year.

Caterpillar Announces Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, November 20th. Investors of record on Monday, October 20th will be issued a $1.51 dividend. This represents a $6.04 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.1%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, October 20th. Caterpillar’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 30.72%.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, Chairman Donald J. Umpleby III sold 17,168 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Tuesday, September 2nd. The stock was sold at an average price of $412.87, for a total value of $7,088,152.16. Following the transaction, the chairman directly owned 482,505 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $199,211,839.35. This trade represents a 3.44% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this link. Also, insider Jason Kaiser sold 2,161 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Monday, August 11th. The stock was sold at an average price of $417.70, for a total value of $902,649.70. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider directly owned 8,632 shares in the company, valued at approximately $3,605,586.40. This represents a 20.02% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last three months, insiders have sold 55,985 shares of company stock valued at $25,559,300. 0.33% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Caterpillar

Institutional investors have recently bought and sold shares of the business. Kilter Group LLC purchased a new stake in Caterpillar in the 2nd quarter worth $27,000. Mid American Wealth Advisory Group Inc. purchased a new position in shares of Caterpillar during the second quarter valued at about $28,000. Compass Financial Services Inc grew its position in Caterpillar by 49.2% in the first quarter. Compass Financial Services Inc now owns 94 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $31,000 after acquiring an additional 31 shares in the last quarter. Family Legacy Financial Solutions LLC purchased a new position in Caterpillar in the second quarter worth about $32,000. Finally, RiverPark Advisors LLC purchased a new position in Caterpillar in the second quarter worth about $32,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 70.98% of the company’s stock.

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.