StockNews.com Downgrades Caterpillar (NYSE:CAT) to Hold

StockNews.com lowered shares of Caterpillar (NYSE:CAT) from a buy rating to a hold rating in a research note issued to investors on Thursday morning.

CAT has been the topic of several other reports. Truist Financial restated a buy rating and issued a $399.00 price target (up from $390.00) on shares of Caterpillar in a research report on Wednesday, August 7th. Raymond James started coverage on Caterpillar in a research report on Friday, June 28th. They set a market perform rating for the company. Evercore ISI reduced their price objective on shares of Caterpillar from $338.00 to $321.00 and set an in-line rating on the stock in a research note on Monday, August 19th. UBS Group upped their target price on shares of Caterpillar from $270.00 to $285.00 and gave the company a sell rating in a research note on Wednesday, August 7th. Finally, Bank of America decreased their price target on shares of Caterpillar from $385.00 to $376.00 and set a buy rating for the company in a report on Wednesday, August 7th. Two analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, ten have given a hold rating and seven have issued a buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company currently has an average rating of Hold and a consensus price target of $336.31.

Caterpillar Price Performance

Caterpillar stock opened at $329.36 on Thursday. The business’s 50-day simple moving average is $339.86 and its 200 day simple moving average is $343.44. The company has a quick ratio of 0.78, a current ratio of 1.28 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.39. The stock has a market cap of $161.07 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 14.87, a P/E/G ratio of 1.66 and a beta of 1.10. Caterpillar has a 12-month low of $223.76 and a 12-month high of $382.01.

Caterpillar (NYSE:CAT) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, August 6th. The industrial products company reported $5.99 EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $5.53 by $0.46. Caterpillar had a net margin of 16.58% and a return on equity of 59.88%. The company had revenue of $16.69 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $16.91 billion. During the same quarter in the previous year, the company earned $5.55 EPS. Caterpillar’s revenue was down 3.6% on a year-over-year basis. As a group, research analysts anticipate that Caterpillar will post 21.87 earnings per share for the current year.

Caterpillar declared that its Board of Directors has approved a stock buyback program on Wednesday, June 12th that allows the company to buyback $20.00 billion in shares. This buyback authorization allows the industrial products company to reacquire up to 12.7% of its stock through open market purchases. Stock buyback programs are typically a sign that the company’s management believes its stock is undervalued.

Caterpillar Increases Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, August 20th. Stockholders of record on Monday, July 22nd were issued a $1.41 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Monday, July 22nd. This is an increase from Caterpillar’s previous quarterly dividend of $1.30. This represents a $5.64 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.71%. Caterpillar’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 25.46%.

Insider Buying and Selling at Caterpillar

In other news, insider Anthony D. Fassino sold 3,185 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Friday, August 30th. The stock was sold at an average price of $351.36, for a total value of $1,119,081.60. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider now owns 33,442 shares in the company, valued at approximately $11,750,181.12. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this hyperlink. In other Caterpillar news, insider Cheryl H. Johnson sold 1,508 shares of the stock in a transaction on Tuesday, July 16th. The shares were sold at an average price of $350.00, for a total value of $527,800.00. Following the completion of the sale, the insider now owns 18,515 shares in the company, valued at $6,480,250. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Also, insider Anthony D. Fassino sold 3,185 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Friday, August 30th. The stock was sold at an average price of $351.36, for a total transaction of $1,119,081.60. Following the transaction, the insider now owns 33,442 shares in the company, valued at $11,750,181.12. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last three months, insiders have sold 7,668 shares of company stock worth $2,665,760. Insiders own 0.33% of the company’s stock.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Caterpillar

A number of hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently bought and sold shares of CAT. Sanctuary Advisors LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Caterpillar in the second quarter valued at approximately $39,548,000. Creekside Partners bought a new position in Caterpillar during the second quarter worth $923,000. Centennial Bank AR increased its holdings in shares of Caterpillar by 99.2% in the second quarter. Centennial Bank AR now owns 261 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $87,000 after purchasing an additional 130 shares during the last quarter. Strategic Investment Solutions Inc. IL bought a new position in shares of Caterpillar in the second quarter valued at about $114,000. Finally, Souders Financial Advisors boosted its holdings in shares of Caterpillar by 0.8% during the 2nd quarter. Souders Financial Advisors now owns 3,657 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $1,218,000 after buying an additional 29 shares during the period. Institutional investors 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.