Caterpillar (NYSE:CAT) Receives “Market Perform” Rating from Oppenheimer

Caterpillar (NYSE:CAT)‘s stock had its “market perform” rating reaffirmed by stock analysts at Oppenheimer in a report released on Thursday, Benzinga reports.

Other equities research analysts have also issued reports about the company. Morgan Stanley started coverage on Caterpillar in a research note on Monday, January 8th. They set an “equal weight” rating and a $270.00 price objective for the company. Robert W. Baird lifted their price target on Caterpillar from $210.00 to $257.00 and gave the stock an “underperform” rating in a research note on Tuesday, February 6th. TD Cowen upped their price objective on shares of Caterpillar from $300.00 to $338.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research note on Tuesday, February 6th. Evercore ISI downgraded shares of Caterpillar from an “outperform” rating to an “in-line” rating and upped their price target for the company from $321.00 to $338.00 in a research report on Tuesday, February 20th. Finally, StockNews.com downgraded shares of Caterpillar from a “strong-buy” rating to a “buy” rating in a research note on Tuesday, February 20th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, nine have issued a hold rating and nine have issued a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat, the stock presently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $307.56.

Caterpillar Price Performance

NYSE:CAT opened at $358.33 on Thursday. The company has a quick ratio of 0.87, a current ratio of 1.35 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.25. The business’s 50-day moving average price is $345.24 and its 200 day moving average price is $296.78. Caterpillar has a 52-week low of $204.04 and a 52-week high of $382.01. The firm has a market cap of $178.95 billion, a P/E ratio of 17.79, a PEG ratio of 1.60 and a beta of 1.17.

Caterpillar (NYSE:CAT) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Monday, February 5th. The industrial products company reported $5.23 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $4.76 by $0.47. Caterpillar had a net margin of 15.41% and a return on equity of 56.99%. The company had revenue of $17.07 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $17.06 billion. During the same quarter in the previous year, the company posted $3.86 EPS. The business’s revenue was up 2.8% compared to the same quarter last year. As a group, sell-side analysts predict that Caterpillar will post 21.33 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Insider Activity at Caterpillar

In other Caterpillar news, insider Lange Bob De sold 21,194 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, February 7th. The stock was sold at an average price of $325.52, for a total transaction of $6,899,070.88. Following the transaction, the insider now directly owns 61,092 shares in the company, valued at $19,886,667.84. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available through this link. In other Caterpillar news, CFO Andrew R. J. Bonfield sold 10,000 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Friday, February 2nd. The shares were sold at an average price of $310.10, for a total transaction of $3,101,000.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief financial officer now owns 57,317 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $17,774,001.70. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. Also, insider Lange Bob De sold 21,194 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, February 7th. The shares were sold at an average price of $325.52, for a total transaction of $6,899,070.88. Following the sale, the insider now owns 61,092 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $19,886,667.84. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last 90 days, insiders sold 45,769 shares of company stock valued at $14,509,306. Insiders own 0.33% of the company’s stock.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Caterpillar

Several large investors have recently made changes to their positions in the business. BCK Partners Inc. bought a new position in Caterpillar in the 1st quarter worth approximately $2,580,000. Sei Investments Co. grew its stake in shares of Caterpillar by 17.3% in the first quarter. Sei Investments Co. now owns 65,643 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $14,634,000 after acquiring an additional 9,695 shares during the last quarter. Dakota Wealth Management bought a new position in Caterpillar during the first quarter worth $405,000. Mather Group LLC. raised its stake in Caterpillar by 6.8% during the 1st quarter. Mather Group LLC. now owns 2,592 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $577,000 after purchasing an additional 165 shares during the last quarter. Finally, NewEdge Advisors LLC boosted its holdings in Caterpillar by 4.4% in the 1st quarter. NewEdge Advisors LLC now owns 49,705 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $11,075,000 after purchasing an additional 2,076 shares during the period. 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.