Brokerages Set Caterpillar Inc. (NYSE:CAT) Price Target at $361.64

Shares of Caterpillar Inc. (NYSE:CAT) have earned an average rating of “Hold” from the fourteen ratings firms that are presently covering the firm, Marketbeat reports. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a sell recommendation, six have given a hold recommendation and seven have assigned a buy recommendation to the company. The average twelve-month price target among brokers that have issued ratings on the stock in the last year is $361.75.

CAT has been the topic of several recent analyst reports. UBS Group upgraded shares of Caterpillar from a “sell” rating to a “neutral” rating and increased their target price for the stock from $355.00 to $385.00 in a research report on Monday, February 3rd. Truist Financial decreased their price objective on shares of Caterpillar from $438.00 to $389.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a report on Tuesday, April 8th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. lowered their price objective on Caterpillar from $490.00 to $380.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a report on Monday, April 14th. Wedbush upgraded Caterpillar to an “outperform” rating in a report on Monday, February 3rd. Finally, StockNews.com cut shares of Caterpillar from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Tuesday, February 25th.

Caterpillar Trading Down 0.2 %

Shares of NYSE:CAT opened at $306.33 on Friday. The company has a 50 day moving average of $321.41 and a 200-day moving average of $360.65. The company has a current ratio of 1.42, a quick ratio of 0.89 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.40. The firm has a market cap of $146.40 billion, a P/E ratio of 13.88, a P/E/G ratio of 1.87 and a beta of 1.21. Caterpillar has a twelve month low of $267.30 and a twelve month high of $418.50.

Caterpillar (NYSE:CAT) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, January 30th. The industrial products company reported $5.14 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $4.97 by $0.17. Caterpillar had a return on equity of 58.18% and a net margin of 16.65%. As a group, analysts anticipate that Caterpillar will post 19.86 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Caterpillar Announces Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, May 20th. Stockholders of record on Monday, April 21st will be paid a $1.41 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Monday, April 21st. This represents a $5.64 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.84%. Caterpillar’s dividend payout ratio is presently 25.56%.

Insider Buying and Selling at Caterpillar

In other news, Director Gerald Johnson bought 100 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, February 4th. The stock was bought at an average price of $365.57 per share, for a total transaction of $36,557.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the director now directly owns 3,053 shares in the company, valued at $1,116,085.21. The trade was a 3.39 % increase in their position. The acquisition was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available at the SEC website. Also, insider Jason Kaiser sold 2,425 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, February 18th. The shares were sold at an average price of $354.70, for a total transaction of $860,147.50. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider now directly owns 6,275 shares in the company, valued at $2,225,742.50. This trade represents a 27.87 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Corporate insiders own 0.29% of the company’s stock.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Caterpillar

Several institutional investors and hedge funds have recently made changes to their positions in the company. Flagship Wealth Advisors LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Caterpillar during the fourth quarter worth $26,000. Halbert Hargrove Global Advisors LLC bought a new stake in shares of Caterpillar in the fourth quarter valued at about $27,000. Cyrus J. Lawrence LLC bought a new position in shares of Caterpillar during the fourth quarter worth about $27,000. Noble Wealth Management PBC acquired a new stake in Caterpillar in the 4th quarter valued at approximately $31,000. Finally, Investment Management Corp VA ADV acquired a new position in Caterpillar during the 4th quarter worth approximately $33,000. 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.