Caterpillar (NYSE:CAT) Issues Earnings Results

Caterpillar (NYSE:CAT) issued its quarterly earnings data on Thursday. The industrial products company reported $5.14 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $4.97 by $0.17, Zacks reports. Caterpillar had a net margin of 16.26% and a return on equity of 59.09%.

Caterpillar Stock Performance

NYSE:CAT opened at $371.88 on Friday. The company has a quick ratio of 0.86, a current ratio of 1.40 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.33. The firm’s fifty day simple moving average is $380.88 and its 200-day simple moving average is $371.00. Caterpillar has a fifty-two week low of $299.93 and a fifty-two week high of $418.50. The stock has a market cap of $179.54 billion, a PE ratio of 17.24, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.05 and a beta of 1.13.

Caterpillar Dividend Announcement

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, February 20th. Stockholders of record on Tuesday, January 21st will be issued a $1.41 dividend. This represents a $5.64 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.52%. The ex-dividend date is Tuesday, January 21st. Caterpillar’s payout ratio is currently 26.15%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

CAT has been the topic of a number of recent research reports. UBS Group lifted their target price on Caterpillar from $295.00 to $355.00 and gave the company a “sell” rating in a research report on Tuesday. Truist Financial lowered their target price on shares of Caterpillar from $471.00 to $455.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a report on Thursday, January 16th. Bank of America lowered their target price on Caterpillar from $452.00 to $414.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a research report on Friday. Jefferies Financial Group raised their target price on Caterpillar from $455.00 to $475.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Friday, December 6th. Finally, StockNews.com downgraded Caterpillar from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Friday, January 17th. Three research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, eight have assigned a hold rating and seven have assigned a buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company currently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $380.13.

Insider Activity

In related news, CFO Andrew R. J. Bonfield sold 10,000 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, January 16th. The stock was sold at an average price of $380.09, for a total value of $3,800,900.00. Following the completion of the sale, the chief financial officer now owns 45,182 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $17,173,226.38. The trade was a 18.12 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this link. Also, Director Gerald Johnson bought 100 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, December 4th. The shares were bought at an average price of $398.57 per share, with a total value of $39,857.00. Following the completion of the purchase, the director now owns 2,953 shares in the company, valued at approximately $1,176,977.21. The trade was a 3.51 % increase in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this purchase can be found here. Insiders sold a total of 32,900 shares of company stock valued at $13,111,601 over the last quarter. Company insiders own 0.29% 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.