Caterpillar (NYSE:CAT) Raised to "Equal Weight" at Morgan Stanley

Morgan Stanley upgraded shares of Caterpillar (NYSE:CAT - Free Report) from an underweight rating to an equal weight rating in a research note published on Wednesday, Marketbeat reports. The brokerage currently has $283.00 price objective on the industrial products company's stock, down from their prior price objective of $300.00.

Several other equities analysts have also recently commented on CAT. Evercore ISI boosted their price objective on shares of Caterpillar from $365.00 to $375.00 and gave the company an "in-line" rating in a research note on Wednesday, February 19th. Bank of America lowered their target price on shares of Caterpillar from $452.00 to $414.00 and set a "buy" rating on the stock in a research note on Friday, January 31st. Citigroup lowered their price objective on shares of Caterpillar from $430.00 to $320.00 and set a "buy" rating on the stock in a research report on Tuesday, April 8th. Truist Financial lowered their price target on shares of Caterpillar from $438.00 to $389.00 and set a "buy" rating for the company in a research note on Tuesday, April 8th. Finally, StockNews.com cut shares of Caterpillar from a "buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a report on Tuesday, February 25th. One analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, nine have given a hold rating and eight have given a buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, the stock has a consensus rating of "Hold" and a consensus price target of $361.64.

Caterpillar Stock Performance

Shares of CAT traded up $3.68 during trading hours on Wednesday, hitting $293.82. The company's stock had a trading volume of 2,716,340 shares, compared to its average volume of 2,639,101. The business has a 50 day simple moving average of $328.46 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $364.66. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.40, a current ratio of 1.42 and a quick ratio of 0.89. Caterpillar has a 52-week low of $267.30 and a 52-week high of $418.50. The company has a market cap of $140.42 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 13.31, a PEG ratio of 1.87 and a beta of 1.21.

Caterpillar (NYSE:CAT - Get Free Report) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, January 30th. The industrial products company reported $5.14 earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $4.97 by $0.17. Caterpillar had a return on equity of 58.18% and a net margin of 16.65%. On average, equities analysts expect that Caterpillar will post 19.86 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Caterpillar Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, May 20th. Shareholders of record on Monday, April 21st will be paid a dividend of $1.41 per share. This represents a $5.64 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.92%. The ex-dividend date is Monday, April 21st. Caterpillar's dividend payout ratio is 25.56%.

Insider Transactions at Caterpillar

In other news, Director Gerald Johnson purchased 100 shares of the company's stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, February 4th. The shares were bought at an average price of $365.57 per share, for a total transaction of $36,557.00. Following the purchase, the director now directly owns 3,053 shares in the company, valued at approximately $1,116,085.21. This trade represents a 3.39 % increase in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this link. 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 sale, the insider now owns 6,275 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $2,225,742.50. This represents a 27.87 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders own 0.29% of the company's stock.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Caterpillar

Several hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in CAT. Flagship Wealth Advisors LLC bought a new stake in Caterpillar in the 4th quarter worth about $26,000. Halbert Hargrove Global Advisors LLC purchased a new position in shares of Caterpillar during the fourth quarter valued at approximately $27,000. Cyrus J. Lawrence LLC bought a new position in Caterpillar during the fourth quarter valued at approximately $27,000. Noble Wealth Management PBC purchased a new stake in Caterpillar in the fourth quarter worth approximately $31,000. Finally, Investment Management Corp VA ADV bought a new stake in Caterpillar in the 4th quarter worth approximately $33,000. 70.98% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

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.