Evercore ISI Downgrades Caterpillar (NYSE:CAT) to Underperform

Caterpillar (NYSE:CAT - Get Free Report) was downgraded by Evercore ISI from an "in-line" rating to an "underperform" rating in a research report issued on Wednesday, Marketbeat Ratings reports. They presently have a $365.00 price objective on the industrial products company's stock, up from their prior price objective of $321.00. Evercore ISI's price target would indicate a potential downside of 6.03% from the stock's previous close.

Other analysts have also recently issued reports about the stock. StockNews.com cut shares of Caterpillar from a "buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a report on Tuesday, September 24th. Barclays lifted their price target on shares of Caterpillar from $315.00 to $335.00 and gave the stock an "equal weight" rating in a report on Wednesday, August 7th. Morgan Stanley lowered Caterpillar from an "equal weight" rating to an "underweight" rating and decreased their price objective for the company from $349.00 to $332.00 in a report on Monday, October 14th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. boosted their target price on Caterpillar from $435.00 to $500.00 and gave the stock an "overweight" rating in a research note on Monday, October 14th. Finally, Truist Financial raised their price target on Caterpillar from $399.00 to $456.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a report on Wednesday, October 9th. Four investment analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, eight have assigned a hold rating and six have assigned a buy rating to the company's stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, Caterpillar presently has a consensus rating of "Hold" and a consensus target price of $365.33.

Caterpillar Stock Down 1.2 %

Shares of NYSE:CAT traded down $4.59 during trading hours on Wednesday, hitting $388.42. The company's stock had a trading volume of 979,584 shares, compared to its average volume of 2,616,863. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.33, a current ratio of 1.40 and a quick ratio of 0.86. The firm's fifty day moving average price is $378.67 and its 200 day moving average price is $353.36. Caterpillar has a 52 week low of $241.81 and a 52 week high of $418.50. The company has a market capitalization of $187.53 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 18.05, a P/E/G ratio of 1.94 and a beta of 1.10.

Caterpillar (NYSE:CAT - Get Free Report) last announced its earnings results on Wednesday, October 30th. The industrial products company reported $5.17 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $5.33 by ($0.16). The company had revenue of $16.11 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $16.37 billion. Caterpillar had a net margin of 16.26% and a return on equity of 59.09%. The firm's revenue was down 4.2% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period last year, the business posted $5.52 EPS. As a group, research analysts expect that Caterpillar will post 21.69 EPS for the current year.

Insider Activity

In related news, insider Cheryl H. Johnson sold 2,975 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction dated Thursday, August 22nd. The shares were sold at an average price of $342.48, for a total transaction of $1,018,878.00. Following the completion of the sale, the insider now directly owns 15,615 shares in the company, valued at approximately $5,347,825.20. This trade represents a 0.00 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this link. In related news, insider Cheryl H. Johnson sold 2,975 shares of the company's stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, August 22nd. The shares were sold at an average price of $342.48, for a total transaction of $1,018,878.00. Following the sale, the insider now directly owns 15,615 shares of the company's stock, valued at $5,347,825.20. This represents a 0.00 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Also, Director Gerald Johnson bought 100 shares of the company's stock in a transaction on Wednesday, September 4th. The shares were acquired at an average price of $338.59 per share, with a total value of $33,859.00. Following the completion of the acquisition, the director now directly owns 2,842 shares in the company, valued at $962,272.78. This represents a 0.00 % increase in their position. The disclosure for this purchase can be found here. In the last quarter, insiders have sold 23,749 shares of company stock valued at $9,251,912. 0.29% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

Institutional Trading of Caterpillar

A number of hedge funds have recently made changes to their positions in the company. Bbjs Financial Advisors LLC purchased a new position in Caterpillar in the second quarter valued at about $28,000. Financial Connections Group Inc. purchased a new position in shares of Caterpillar during the 2nd quarter valued at approximately $28,000. Fairscale Capital LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Caterpillar during the second quarter worth approximately $36,000. Capital Performance Advisors LLP bought a new position in Caterpillar during the 3rd quarter valued at $36,000. Finally, POM Investment Strategies LLC increased its position in shares of Caterpillar by 2,160.0% in the 2nd quarter. POM Investment Strategies LLC now owns 113 shares of the industrial products company's stock worth $38,000 after purchasing an additional 108 shares during the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors 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.