Caterpillar Inc. (NYSE:CAT) Given Average Rating of “Moderate Buy” by Analysts

Caterpillar Inc. (NYSE:CAT) has earned a consensus recommendation of “Moderate Buy” from the twenty-five analysts that are currently covering the company, Marketbeat.com reports. Nine research analysts have rated the stock with a hold recommendation and sixteen have assigned a buy recommendation to the company. The average 1-year price target among brokerages that have updated their coverage on the stock in the last year is $923.1364.

Several brokerages have issued reports on CAT. Morgan Stanley set a $915.00 price target on Caterpillar and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a report on Friday, May 1st. CICC Research began coverage on Caterpillar in a report on Friday, February 6th. They issued an “outperform” rating on the stock. Jefferies Financial Group increased their price target on Caterpillar from $900.00 to $1,045.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Friday, May 1st. Evercore reiterated an “outperform” rating and issued a $1,103.00 price target on shares of Caterpillar in a report on Monday, May 11th. Finally, Bank of America increased their price target on Caterpillar from $930.00 to $989.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Friday, May 1st.

Key Caterpillar News

Here are the key news stories impacting Caterpillar this week:

• Positive Sentiment: Caterpillar’s Power & Energy business is being highlighted as a major growth opportunity, with rising backlog, capacity expansion, and demand from AI data centers supporting the company’s longer-term targets. Article Title
• Positive Sentiment: Separate coverage is reinforcing Caterpillar as a “power infrastructure play,” helped by a strategic framework agreement tied to up to 2.1 gigawatts of incremental power-generation assets, which suggests additional demand beyond its core construction and mining equipment businesses. Article Title
• Positive Sentiment: Caterpillar was also mentioned among the stocks helping drive a strong Dow rally, indicating broader investor demand for the name during today’s market advance. Article Title
• Neutral Sentiment: Caterpillar was included in a hedge-fund stock screen, which may reflect institutional interest, but the item did not add a clear new catalyst by itself. Article Title

Caterpillar Stock Up 1.6%

Shares of Caterpillar stock opened at $880.23 on Friday. Caterpillar has a one year low of $336.24 and a one year high of $931.35. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.64, a current ratio of 1.35 and a quick ratio of 0.81. The stock’s 50-day moving average is $791.73 and its 200 day moving average is $690.84. The firm has a market cap of $405.42 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 43.81, a PEG ratio of 1.74 and a beta of 1.63.

Caterpillar (NYSE:CAT) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, April 30th. The industrial products company reported $5.54 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $4.65 by $0.89. The business had revenue of $17.42 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $16.53 billion. Caterpillar had a return on equity of 48.21% and a net margin of 13.33%.The company’s quarterly revenue was up 22.2% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the prior year, the company earned $4.25 earnings per share. Equities research analysts anticipate that Caterpillar will post 24.67 EPS for the current year.

Caterpillar Announces Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, May 19th. Shareholders of record on Monday, April 20th were issued a $1.51 dividend. The ex-dividend date was Monday, April 20th. This represents a $6.04 annualized dividend and a yield of 0.7%. Caterpillar’s dividend payout ratio is presently 30.06%.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other news, insider Lange Bob De sold 24,222 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, May 6th. The stock was sold at an average price of $922.92, for a total value of $22,354,968.24. Following the transaction, the insider owned 86,029 shares in the company, valued at $79,397,884.68. This trade represents a 21.97% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this hyperlink. Also, insider Anthony D. Fassino sold 16,283 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, May 11th. The shares were sold at an average price of $916.80, for a total value of $14,928,254.40. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider owned 46,041 shares in the company, valued at $42,210,388.80. This represents a 26.13% decrease in their position. Additional details regarding this sale are available in the official SEC disclosure. Over the last ninety days, insiders have sold 100,551 shares of company stock valued at $91,170,351. 0.33% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Large investors have recently modified their holdings of the stock. Lam Group Inc. bought a new position in shares of Caterpillar in the first quarter valued at approximately $26,000. Torren Management LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Caterpillar during the fourth quarter valued at approximately $27,000. Frazier Financial Advisors LLC increased its position in shares of Caterpillar by 220.0% during the fourth quarter. Frazier Financial Advisors LLC now owns 48 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $28,000 after acquiring an additional 33 shares during the last quarter. Cedar Mountain Advisors LLC increased its position in shares of Caterpillar by 82.1% during the first quarter. Cedar Mountain Advisors LLC now owns 51 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $36,000 after acquiring an additional 23 shares during the last quarter. Finally, IFS Advisors LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Caterpillar during the fourth quarter valued at approximately $31,000. Institutional investors own 70.98% of the company’s stock.

Caterpillar Company Profile

Caterpillar Inc is a global manufacturer of construction and mining equipment, diesel and natural gas engines, industrial gas turbines and locomotives. The company’s product portfolio includes earthmoving machines such as excavators, bulldozers, wheel loaders and off‑highway trucks, as well as a range of power generation products including generator sets and power systems for industrial and commercial use. Caterpillar serves customers across heavy construction, mining, energy, transportation and related industries with both equipment and integrated technology solutions.

In addition to manufacturing, Caterpillar provides a broad range of aftermarket parts and support services, including maintenance, repair, remanufacturing and fleet management tools.