Jefferies Financial Group Forecasts Strong Price Appreciation for Caterpillar (NYSE:CAT) Stock

Caterpillar (NYSE:CAT) had its price objective raised by analysts at Jefferies Financial Group from $570.00 to $700.00 in a research report issued on Wednesday,MarketScreener reports. The firm presently has a “buy” rating on the industrial products company’s stock. Jefferies Financial Group’s price objective points to a potential upside of 24.37% from the stock’s current price.

Several other equities analysts also recently commented on CAT. UBS Group increased their target price on shares of Caterpillar from $506.00 to $581.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research report on Tuesday. HSBC raised Caterpillar from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating and increased their price objective for the company from $405.00 to $660.00 in a report on Wednesday. Melius upgraded Caterpillar from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating and set a $500.00 target price for the company in a report on Wednesday, July 9th. Sanford C. Bernstein reiterated a “market perform” rating on shares of Caterpillar in a report on Wednesday. Finally, Barclays boosted their price objective on shares of Caterpillar from $485.00 to $555.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a research note on Thursday, October 30th. Three equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, fourteen have given a Buy rating, five have assigned a Hold rating and one has given a Sell rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $596.59.

Caterpillar Stock Down 1.2%

CAT opened at $562.82 on Wednesday. The company has a market capitalization of $263.39 billion, a PE ratio of 28.89, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 3.33 and a beta of 1.51. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.34, a current ratio of 1.38 and a quick ratio of 0.81. Caterpillar has a fifty-two week low of $267.30 and a fifty-two week high of $596.21. The business has a 50-day moving average of $491.77 and a 200-day moving average of $417.84.

Caterpillar (NYSE:CAT) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, October 29th. The industrial products company reported $4.95 earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $4.52 by $0.43. The firm had revenue of $17.64 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $16.72 billion. Caterpillar had a net margin of 14.34% and a return on equity of 47.16%. The company’s revenue for the quarter was up 9.5% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter last year, the firm earned $5.17 earnings per share. Equities research analysts forecast that Caterpillar will post 19.86 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Insider Activity at Caterpillar

In other Caterpillar news, insider Jason Kaiser sold 2,161 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, August 11th. The stock was sold at an average price of $417.70, for a total value of $902,649.70. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider owned 8,632 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $3,605,586.40. This represents a 20.02% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available at this link. Also, Director Susan C. Schwab sold 2,324 shares of Caterpillar stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, August 15th. The stock was sold at an average price of $410.00, for a total value of $952,840.00. Following the sale, the director directly owned 6,917 shares in the company, valued at $2,835,970. The trade was a 25.15% decrease in their position. Additional details regarding this sale are available in the official SEC disclosure. In the last 90 days, insiders have sold 71,823 shares of company stock worth $34,477,790. Insiders own 0.33% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Caterpillar

A number of institutional investors have recently bought and sold shares of the business. Fisher Asset Management LLC raised its position in Caterpillar by 2.3% in the second quarter. Fisher Asset Management LLC now owns 9,418,321 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $3,656,286,000 after purchasing an additional 208,196 shares in the last quarter. Valeo Financial Advisors LLC grew its stake in shares of Caterpillar by 36,842.1% in the 2nd quarter. Valeo Financial Advisors LLC now owns 7,299,751 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $2,833,836,000 after purchasing an additional 7,279,991 shares during the period. Norges Bank bought a new position in shares of Caterpillar during the 2nd quarter worth approximately $2,165,899,000. UBS AM A Distinct Business Unit of UBS Asset Management Americas LLC boosted its stake in Caterpillar by 6.7% in the 1st quarter. UBS AM A Distinct Business Unit of UBS Asset Management Americas LLC now owns 4,204,445 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $1,386,626,000 after buying an additional 264,054 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Bank of New York Mellon Corp grew its position in Caterpillar by 20.7% in the third quarter. Bank of New York Mellon Corp now owns 3,553,930 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $1,695,757,000 after acquiring an additional 609,023 shares during the period. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 70.98% of the company’s stock.

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.