Caterpillar (NYSE:CAT) Rating Lowered to “Hold” at StockNews.com

Caterpillar (NYSE:CAT) was downgraded by analysts at StockNews.com from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note issued on Tuesday.

Several other research firms have also weighed in on CAT. Evercore ISI lowered shares of Caterpillar from an “in-line” rating to an “underperform” rating and raised their price objective for the company from $321.00 to $365.00 in a research report on Wednesday, November 13th. Morgan Stanley cut Caterpillar from an “equal weight” rating to an “underweight” rating and reduced their price objective for the company from $349.00 to $332.00 in a research report on Monday, October 14th. Truist Financial lifted their price objective on shares of Caterpillar from $454.00 to $471.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Thursday, December 19th. Robert W. Baird lifted their price target on shares of Caterpillar from $299.00 to $300.00 and gave the company an “underperform” rating in a research report on Thursday, October 31st. Finally, Bank of America raised their target price on shares of Caterpillar from $376.00 to $434.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Monday, September 30th. Four equities research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, seven have given a hold rating and seven have issued a buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, Caterpillar presently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $384.33.

Caterpillar Stock Performance

CAT opened at $367.57 on Tuesday. Caterpillar has a twelve month low of $276.94 and a twelve month high of $418.50. The stock has a market cap of $177.46 billion, a PE ratio of 17.04, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.92 and a beta of 1.10. The business’s 50 day moving average is $388.59 and its 200-day moving average is $362.42. The company has a current ratio of 1.40, a quick ratio of 0.86 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.33.

Caterpillar (NYSE:CAT) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, October 30th. The industrial products company reported $5.17 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $5.33 by ($0.16). Caterpillar had a return on equity of 59.09% and a net margin of 16.26%. The business had revenue of $16.11 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $16.37 billion. During the same quarter last year, the firm posted $5.52 EPS. The company’s revenue was down 4.2% compared to the same quarter last year. On average, analysts predict that Caterpillar will post 21.68 earnings per share for the current year.

Insider Activity

In related news, CAO William E. Schaupp sold 968 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Friday, November 1st. The shares were sold at an average price of $380.98, for a total value of $368,788.64. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief accounting officer now owns 1,686 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $642,332.28. This trade represents a 36.47 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Also, insider Anthony D. Fassino sold 6,279 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Friday, November 29th. The stock was sold at an average price of $408.59, for a total value of $2,565,536.61. Following the sale, the insider now owns 33,565 shares in the company, valued at $13,714,323.35. The trade was a 15.76 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold 23,868 shares of company stock valued at $9,679,489 in the last quarter. Company insiders own 0.29% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently made changes to their positions in the business. Lantz Financial LLC increased its stake in shares of Caterpillar by 2.9% during the second quarter. Lantz Financial LLC now owns 4,181 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $1,393,000 after purchasing an additional 116 shares during the period. Arkadios Wealth Advisors grew its stake in shares of Caterpillar by 15.0% in the second quarter. Arkadios Wealth Advisors now owns 6,370 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $2,122,000 after acquiring an additional 831 shares in the last quarter. F M Investments LLC acquired a new stake in Caterpillar in the 2nd quarter worth about $10,955,000. Nations Financial Group Inc. IA ADV boosted its holdings in Caterpillar by 0.7% in the 2nd quarter. Nations Financial Group Inc. IA ADV now owns 5,681 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $1,892,000 after purchasing an additional 42 shares during the period. Finally, Crewe Advisors LLC increased its holdings in shares of Caterpillar by 3.4% during the second quarter. Crewe Advisors LLC now owns 1,712 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $570,000 after purchasing an additional 57 shares during the period. 70.98% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

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.