Caterpillar (NYSE:CAT) Announces Earnings Results, Misses Estimates By $0.16 EPS

Caterpillar (NYSE:CAT) announced its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday. The industrial products company reported $5.17 earnings per share for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $5.33 by ($0.16), Briefing.com reports. Caterpillar had a return on equity of 59.88% and a net margin of 16.58%. The business had revenue of $16.11 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $16.37 billion. During the same quarter last year, the company posted $5.52 EPS. Caterpillar’s revenue for the quarter was down 4.2% compared to the same quarter last year.

Caterpillar Stock Performance

Shares of Caterpillar stock traded down $2.74 on Thursday, hitting $376.50. 903,913 shares of the company’s stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 2,621,874. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.39, a quick ratio of 0.78 and a current ratio of 1.28. The stock has a market capitalization of $182.56 billion, a PE ratio of 17.27, a PEG ratio of 1.85 and a beta of 1.10. Caterpillar has a 1 year low of $223.76 and a 1 year high of $403.60. The company has a 50-day simple moving average of $371.10 and a 200-day simple moving average of $351.14.

Caterpillar Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, November 20th. Investors of record on Monday, October 21st will be given 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 1.50%. Caterpillar’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 25.68%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

CAT has been the subject of a number of analyst reports. Robert W. Baird raised their price objective on Caterpillar from $299.00 to $300.00 and gave the company an “underperform” rating in a research report on Thursday. Barclays raised their price target on Caterpillar from $315.00 to $335.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a report on Wednesday, August 7th. UBS Group upped their price target on shares of Caterpillar from $270.00 to $285.00 and gave the stock a “sell” rating in a research note on Wednesday, August 7th. Evercore ISI reduced their price objective on shares of Caterpillar from $338.00 to $321.00 and set an “in-line” rating for the company in a research note on Monday, August 19th. Finally, Truist Financial upped their target price on shares of Caterpillar from $399.00 to $456.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Wednesday, October 9th. Three analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, nine have given a hold rating and seven have issued a buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, Caterpillar presently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $358.19.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other news, Director Gerald Johnson bought 100 shares of Caterpillar stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, September 4th. The stock was bought at an average cost of $338.59 per share, with a total value of $33,859.00. Following the acquisition, the director now owns 2,842 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $962,272.78. The trade was a 0.00 % increase in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this link. In other news, Director Gerald Johnson bought 100 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, September 4th. The stock was bought at an average price of $338.59 per share, with a total value of $33,859.00. Following the acquisition, the director now owns 2,842 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $962,272.78. This represents a 0.00 % increase in their position. The acquisition was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this link. Also, insider Anthony D. Fassino sold 3,185 shares of the stock in a transaction on 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 completion of the sale, the insider now owns 33,442 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $11,750,181.12. The trade was a 0.00 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. 0.29% of the stock is owned by insiders.

About Caterpillar

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.