Morgan Stanley Lowers Caterpillar (NYSE:CAT) to Underweight

Morgan Stanley cut shares of Caterpillar (NYSE:CAT) from an equal weight rating to an underweight rating in a report issued on Monday, MarketBeat.com reports. They currently have $332.00 target price on the industrial products company’s stock, down from their previous target price of $349.00.

A number of other equities research analysts have also issued reports on CAT. Bank of America boosted their price target on shares of Caterpillar from $376.00 to $434.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Monday, September 30th. Raymond James began coverage on Caterpillar in a research report on Friday, June 28th. They issued a “market perform” rating for the company. Evercore ISI dropped their price target on Caterpillar from $338.00 to $321.00 and set an “in-line” rating on the stock in a research report on Monday, August 19th. Barclays raised their price objective on Caterpillar from $315.00 to $335.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a research report on Wednesday, August 7th. Finally, StockNews.com downgraded Caterpillar from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Tuesday, September 24th. Three investment analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, nine have issued a hold rating and seven have issued a buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, the company currently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $355.50.

Caterpillar Stock Performance

CAT opened at $393.66 on Monday. The company has a quick ratio of 0.78, a current ratio of 1.28 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.39. The firm has a market cap of $192.52 billion, a PE ratio of 17.77, a P/E/G ratio of 1.85 and a beta of 1.10. The business has a fifty day simple moving average of $361.58 and a 200-day simple moving average of $349.92. Caterpillar has a fifty-two week low of $223.76 and a fifty-two week high of $403.60.

Caterpillar (NYSE:CAT) last released its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, August 6th. The industrial products company reported $5.99 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $5.53 by $0.46. The business had revenue of $16.69 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $16.91 billion. Caterpillar had a return on equity of 59.88% and a net margin of 16.58%. Caterpillar’s revenue for the quarter was down 3.6% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter last year, the company posted $5.55 EPS. As a group, equities analysts predict that Caterpillar will post 21.91 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Caterpillar Dividend Announcement

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, November 20th. Shareholders of record on Monday, October 21st will be issued a dividend of $1.41 per share. The ex-dividend date is Monday, October 21st. This represents a $5.64 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.43%. Caterpillar’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 25.46%.

Insider Transactions at Caterpillar

In related news, Director Gerald Johnson acquired 100 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, September 4th. The shares were acquired at an average cost of $338.59 per share, with a total value of $33,859.00. Following the purchase, the director now owns 2,842 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $962,272.78. The trade was a 0.00 % increase in their ownership of the stock. The acquisition was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through the SEC website. In other news, insider Anthony D. Fassino sold 3,185 shares of Caterpillar stock in a transaction dated Friday, August 30th. The stock was sold at an average price of $351.36, for a total value of $1,119,081.60. Following the transaction, the insider now directly owns 33,442 shares in the company, valued at approximately $11,750,181.12. The trade was a 0.00 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Also, Director Gerald Johnson acquired 100 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, September 4th. The shares were acquired at an average cost of $338.59 per share, with a total value of $33,859.00. Following the transaction, the director now directly owns 2,842 shares in the company, valued at $962,272.78. The trade was a 0.00 % increase in their position. The disclosure for this purchase can be found here. 0.33% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

A number of large investors have recently modified their holdings of CAT. Acadian Asset Management LLC raised its stake in Caterpillar by 17.2% during the 1st quarter. Acadian Asset Management LLC now owns 9,037 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $3,308,000 after purchasing an additional 1,327 shares during the last quarter. Alpha Cubed Investments LLC raised its position in shares of Caterpillar by 5.6% during the third quarter. Alpha Cubed Investments LLC now owns 116,566 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $45,591,000 after buying an additional 6,212 shares during the last quarter. Diversify Advisory Services LLC bought a new stake in shares of Caterpillar in the first quarter valued at about $926,000. First Affirmative Financial Network bought a new position in Caterpillar during the third quarter valued at about $204,000. Finally, Natixis Advisors LLC raised its holdings in Caterpillar by 3.5% in the 2nd quarter. Natixis Advisors LLC now owns 278,259 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $92,688,000 after acquiring an additional 9,321 shares in the last quarter. 70.98% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

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.