Caterpillar (NYSE:CAT) Price Target Raised to $360.00 at HSBC

Caterpillar (NYSE:CAT) had its target price upped by HSBC from $330.00 to $360.00 in a report published on Tuesday morning, Benzinga reports. They currently have a hold rating on the industrial products company’s stock.

Several other research analysts have also recently issued reports on the company. Stifel Nicolaus cut Caterpillar from a buy rating to a hold rating and increased their price objective for the stock from $293.00 to $350.00 in a research report on Friday, April 26th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. raised their price target on Caterpillar from $385.00 to $435.00 and gave the company an overweight rating in a research report on Tuesday, April 16th. Wells Fargo & Company raised their price target on Caterpillar from $290.00 to $325.00 and gave the company an equal weight rating in a research report on Tuesday, February 6th. Oppenheimer restated a market perform rating on shares of Caterpillar in a research report on Thursday, April 18th. Finally, Citigroup raised their price target on Caterpillar from $255.00 to $340.00 and gave the company a neutral rating in a research report on Monday, February 12th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, ten have issued a hold rating and eight have issued a buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, Caterpillar has a consensus rating of Hold and a consensus target price of $323.35.

Caterpillar Trading Down 4.4 %

NYSE:CAT opened at $334.57 on Tuesday. The stock has a fifty day moving average price of $351.08 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $302.22. The stock has a market capitalization of $167.08 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 15.10, a PEG ratio of 1.52 and a beta of 1.17. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.41, a quick ratio of 0.83 and a current ratio of 1.35. Caterpillar has a 1 year low of $205.60 and a 1 year high of $382.01.

Caterpillar (NYSE:CAT) last released its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, April 25th. The industrial products company reported $5.60 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $5.12 by $0.48. The firm had revenue of $15.80 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $16.07 billion. Caterpillar had a return on equity of 58.61% and a net margin of 16.79%. As a group, sell-side analysts anticipate that Caterpillar will post 21.44 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Caterpillar Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, May 20th. Shareholders of record on Monday, April 22nd will be paid a $1.30 dividend. This represents a $5.20 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.55%. The ex-dividend date is Friday, April 19th. Caterpillar’s payout ratio is 23.48%.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other Caterpillar news, CFO Andrew R. J. Bonfield sold 10,000 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Friday, February 2nd. The stock was sold at an average price of $310.10, for a total value of $3,101,000.00. Following the sale, the chief financial officer now directly owns 57,317 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $17,774,001.70. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this link. In other news, insider Anthony D. Fassino sold 4,575 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, February 28th. The stock was sold at an average price of $329.80, for a total value of $1,508,835.00. Following the transaction, the insider now directly owns 23,474 shares in the company, valued at approximately $7,741,725.20. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is accessible through the SEC website. Also, CFO Andrew R. J. Bonfield sold 10,000 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Friday, February 2nd. The stock was sold at an average price of $310.10, for a total value of $3,101,000.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief financial officer now owns 57,317 shares in the company, valued at $17,774,001.70. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last ninety days, insiders have sold 35,769 shares of company stock valued at $11,508,906. Insiders own 0.33% of the company’s stock.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Caterpillar

A number of large investors have recently modified their holdings of CAT. Partnership Wealth Management LLC purchased a new position in shares of Caterpillar in the 4th quarter worth about $26,000. Richardson Financial Services Inc. purchased a new position in shares of Caterpillar in the 4th quarter worth about $27,000. Thompson Investment Management Inc. purchased a new position in shares of Caterpillar in the 1st quarter worth about $27,000. Fairman Group LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Caterpillar during the 1st quarter valued at about $29,000. Finally, Gilfoyle & Co LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Caterpillar during the 4th quarter valued at about $30,000. 70.98% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other 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.