Brokerages Set Caterpillar Inc. (NYSE:CAT) PT at $327.13

Shares of Caterpillar Inc. (NYSE:CAT) have been assigned a consensus recommendation of “Hold” from the seventeen research firms that are covering the company, MarketBeat.com reports. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a sell recommendation, eight have assigned a hold recommendation and eight have issued a buy recommendation on the company. The average 1 year price objective among brokers that have updated their coverage on the stock in the last year is $329.63.

Several equities analysts recently issued reports on CAT shares. Truist Financial initiated coverage on Caterpillar in a research note on Thursday, March 14th. They set a “buy” rating and a $390.00 target price on the stock. Stifel Nicolaus cut shares of Caterpillar from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating and lifted their price objective for the company from $293.00 to $350.00 in a report on Friday, April 26th. Oppenheimer reiterated a “market perform” rating on shares of Caterpillar in a report on Thursday, April 18th. The Goldman Sachs Group upped their price objective on Caterpillar from $357.00 to $408.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Tuesday, April 16th. Finally, TD Cowen lifted their target price on Caterpillar from $338.00 to $340.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Friday, April 26th.

Caterpillar Trading Up 0.2 %

Shares of CAT stock opened at $327.51 on Friday. Caterpillar has a 1-year low of $223.76 and a 1-year high of $382.01. The firm has a market cap of $160.17 billion, a PE ratio of 14.79, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.68 and a beta of 1.14. The company has a 50-day moving average of $340.74 and a two-hundred day moving average of $328.07. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.41, a current ratio of 1.35 and a quick ratio of 0.83.

Caterpillar (NYSE:CAT) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, April 25th. The industrial products company reported $5.60 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $5.12 by $0.48. The firm had revenue of $15.80 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $16.07 billion. Caterpillar had a net margin of 16.79% and a return on equity of 58.61%. On average, analysts predict that Caterpillar will post 21.84 EPS for the current year.

Caterpillar Increases Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, August 20th. Investors of record on Monday, July 22nd will be paid a dividend of $1.41 per share. This is a positive change from Caterpillar’s previous quarterly dividend of $1.30. This represents a $5.64 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.72%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, July 22nd. Caterpillar’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 23.48%.

Caterpillar declared that its board has initiated a share repurchase program on Wednesday, June 12th that permits the company to buyback $20.00 billion in outstanding shares. This buyback authorization permits the industrial products company to buy up to 12.7% of its stock through open market purchases. Stock buyback programs are often a sign that the company’s leadership believes its stock is undervalued.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other news, insider Cheryl H. Johnson sold 1,508 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, May 30th. The shares were sold at an average price of $340.00, for a total transaction of $512,720.00. Following the transaction, the insider now directly owns 20,023 shares in the company, valued at $6,807,820. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this hyperlink. In other news, insider Cheryl H. Johnson sold 1,508 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Thursday, May 30th. The shares were sold at an average price of $340.00, for a total transaction of $512,720.00. Following the completion of the sale, the insider now owns 20,023 shares in the company, valued at $6,807,820. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this link. Also, Director David Maclennan purchased 500 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, May 3rd. The stock was bought at an average price of $337.39 per share, for a total transaction of $168,695.00. Following the transaction, the director now directly owns 5,738 shares in the company, valued at $1,935,943.82. The disclosure for this purchase can be found here. 0.33% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Caterpillar

Several institutional investors have recently bought and sold shares of the company. Partnership Wealth Management LLC purchased a new stake in Caterpillar in the 4th quarter valued at approximately $26,000. Richardson Financial Services Inc. purchased a new stake in shares of Caterpillar in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $27,000. Thompson Investment Management Inc. purchased a new position in Caterpillar in the first quarter worth $27,000. Fairman Group LLC acquired a new stake in Caterpillar in the first quarter valued at $29,000. Finally, Gilfoyle & Co LLC acquired a new position in shares of Caterpillar during the 4th quarter worth $30,000. 70.98% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

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.