Caterpillar (NYSE:CAT) Stock Gets Price Target Cut from DA Davidson

Caterpillar (NYSE:CAT) had its target price trimmed by DA Davidson from $882.00 to $685.00 in a research note released on Monday morning,Benzinga reports. The firm currently has a neutral rating on the industrial products company’s stock.

Other analysts also recently issued reports about the company. Oppenheimer reaffirmed an “outperform” rating and issued a $1,009.00 target price on shares of Caterpillar in a research note on Thursday, October 29th. Wall Street Zen cut shares of Caterpillar from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Saturday, October 31st. UBS Group lowered their price target on shares of Caterpillar from $925.00 to $750.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a research report on Monday, October 26th. Barclays upped their price objective on shares of Caterpillar from $800.00 to $900.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a report on Thursday, August 6th. Finally, Sanford C. Bernstein restated a “market perform” rating and set a $749.00 price objective on shares of Caterpillar in a research report on Wednesday, October 14th. Fifteen equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and twelve have assigned a Hold rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, Caterpillar currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $898.25.

Caterpillar Trading Down 5.2%

Shares of CAT stock opened at $591.34 on Monday. The stock’s fifty day moving average is $770.75 and its two-hundred day moving average is $807.05. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.50, a quick ratio of 0.88 and a current ratio of 1.42. The firm has a market capitalization of $271.82 billion, a P/E ratio of 23.93, a PEG ratio of 1.07 and a beta of 1.65. Caterpillar has a fifty-two week low of $537.08 and a fifty-two week high of $1,073.46.

Caterpillar (NYSE:CAT) last released its earnings results on Thursday, October 29th. The industrial products company reported $7.20 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $7.06 by $0.14. Caterpillar had a net margin of 15.21% and a return on equity of 59.87%. The business had revenue of $20.68 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $20.76 billion. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm earned $4.95 earnings per share. The company’s revenue for the quarter was up 17.3% compared to the same quarter last year. Research analysts expect that Caterpillar will post 27.62 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Caterpillar Announces Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, November 19th. Shareholders of record on Monday, October 26th will be given a $1.63 dividend. This represents a $6.52 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.1%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, October 26th. Caterpillar’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 25.58%.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In related news, Director James C. Fish, Jr. acquired 1,000 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Monday, November 2nd. The stock was acquired at an average cost of $620.39 per share, with a total value of $620,390.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the director owned 4,714 shares in the company, valued at $2,924,518.46. This represents a 26.93% increase in their position. The purchase was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. Also, CEO Joseph Creed sold 32,401 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, August 28th. The stock was sold at an average price of $808.98, for a total transaction of $26,211,760.98. Following the sale, the chief executive officer owned 34,555 shares in the company, valued at $27,954,303.90. The trade was a 48.39% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale is available in the SEC filing. Company insiders own 0.33% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Trading of Caterpillar

Several hedge funds have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Decker Retirement Planning Inc. increased its stake in Caterpillar by 440.0% in the second quarter. Decker Retirement Planning Inc. now owns 27 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $29,000 after purchasing an additional 22 shares during the last quarter. PFS Partners LLC lifted its position in shares of Caterpillar by 1,750.0% during the 3rd quarter. PFS Partners LLC now owns 37 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $30,000 after buying an additional 35 shares during the last quarter. Matrix Trust Co lifted its position in shares of Caterpillar by 93.8% during the 2nd quarter. Matrix Trust Co now owns 31 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $33,000 after buying an additional 15 shares during the last quarter. Cedar Mountain Advisors LLC boosted its holdings in shares of Caterpillar by 82.1% in the 1st quarter. Cedar Mountain Advisors LLC now owns 51 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $36,000 after buying an additional 23 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Axiom Investment Management LLC acquired a new position in shares of Caterpillar in the 2nd quarter valued at $36,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 70.98% of the company’s stock.

Caterpillar News Roundup

Here are the key news stories impacting Caterpillar this week:

• Positive Sentiment: Caterpillar reported a record $78 billion backlog and is expanding engine and turbine capacity to serve surging data-center power demand—an important growth opportunity. Article: CAT Q3 Earnings Call Highlights Record Backlog and Capacity Push
• Positive Sentiment: Director James Fish bought 1,000 shares for about $620,000, increasing his stake by nearly 27%; the insider purchase may indicate confidence in the company. Article: Caterpillar Director Purchases Stock
• Neutral Sentiment: Caterpillar completed its acquisition of Fabick Cat, a regional dealership. The deal expands its dealer operations, but the articles provide no estimate of its near-term financial impact. Article: Caterpillar Completes Fabick Cat Acquisition
• Negative Sentiment: Morgan Stanley cut its price target by 26% after earnings, citing falling orders and dealers trimming inventory. The firm sees the stock facing a more cyclical test after its AI-related rally. Article: Morgan Stanley Cuts Caterpillar Stock Price Target
• Negative Sentiment: Despite robust demand, tariffs, manufacturing costs and production constraints are pressuring margins and limiting how quickly Caterpillar can fulfill its backlog. Article: Caterpillar Backlog Meets Capacity Constraints
• Negative Sentiment: One report attributed weakness partly to a broader pullback in AI-linked stocks following the U.S. election, noting Caterpillar was being traded as an AI-power beneficiary despite no company-specific news. Article: Caterpillar Sinks as Investors Reassess AI Trade

Caterpillar Company Profile

Caterpillar Inc is a manufacturer of construction, mining, and industrial equipment. Its product portfolio includes excavators, bulldozers, wheel loaders, motor graders, articulated trucks, and other machinery used in construction, infrastructure development, mining, quarrying, forestry, and related industries. The company also produces diesel and natural gas engines, industrial gas turbines, generator sets, and other power-generation and transportation equipment.

Caterpillar operates through businesses focused on construction industries, resource industries, and energy and transportation.