Bank of America Has Lowered Expectations for Caterpillar (NYSE:CAT) Stock Price

Caterpillar (NYSE:CAT) had its price objective reduced by Bank of America from $452.00 to $414.00 in a report issued on Friday,Benzinga reports. The firm currently has a “buy” rating on the industrial products company’s stock. Bank of America‘s target price indicates a potential upside of 11.33% from the stock’s current price.

Several other brokerages also recently issued reports on CAT. Morgan Stanley reduced their price objective on Caterpillar from $330.00 to $300.00 and set an “underweight” rating on the stock in a research report on Friday. Evercore ISI raised Caterpillar from an “underperform” rating to an “in-line” rating and set a $365.00 price target on the stock in a research note on Monday, January 13th. UBS Group raised their price target on Caterpillar from $295.00 to $355.00 and gave the stock a “sell” rating in a research note on Tuesday, January 28th. Robert W. Baird raised their price target on Caterpillar from $299.00 to $300.00 and gave the stock an “underperform” rating in a research note on Thursday, October 31st. Finally, Jefferies Financial Group raised their price target on Caterpillar from $455.00 to $475.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Friday, December 6th. Three investment analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, eight have issued a hold rating and seven have assigned a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company currently has an average rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $380.13.

Caterpillar Stock Down 0.8 %

Shares of NYSE:CAT opened at $371.88 on Friday. The company has a quick ratio of 0.86, a current ratio of 1.40 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.33. Caterpillar has a 52-week low of $299.93 and a 52-week high of $418.50. The stock’s fifty day simple moving average is $380.88 and its 200-day simple moving average is $371.00. The company has a market capitalization of $179.54 billion, a P/E ratio of 17.24, a P/E/G ratio of 2.05 and a beta of 1.13.

Caterpillar (NYSE:CAT) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, January 30th. The industrial products company reported $5.14 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $4.97 by $0.17. Caterpillar had a return on equity of 59.09% and a net margin of 16.26%. As a group, equities research analysts forecast that Caterpillar will post 21.71 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Insider Activity at Caterpillar

In other Caterpillar news, insider Cheryl H. Johnson sold 2,664 shares of Caterpillar stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, November 4th. The stock was sold at an average price of $378.84, for a total transaction of $1,009,229.76. Following the sale, the insider now directly owns 12,951 shares in the company, valued at $4,906,356.84. The trade was a 17.06 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through the SEC website. Also, Director Daniel M. Dickinson sold 1,300 shares of Caterpillar stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, November 6th. The stock was sold at an average price of $418.00, for a total value of $543,400.00. Following the sale, the director now owns 4,976 shares in the company, valued at $2,079,968. This represents a 20.71 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last ninety days, insiders have sold 32,900 shares of company stock worth $13,111,601. 0.29% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Several hedge funds have recently made changes to their positions in CAT. Retirement Wealth Solutions LLC acquired a new position in shares of Caterpillar in the 4th quarter worth approximately $34,000. Capital Performance Advisors LLP acquired a new position in Caterpillar during the 3rd quarter valued at approximately $36,000. Albion Financial Group UT boosted its position in Caterpillar by 334.8% during the 4th quarter. Albion Financial Group UT now owns 100 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $36,000 after purchasing an additional 77 shares during the period. Kimelman & Baird LLC boosted its position in Caterpillar by 42.9% during the 3rd quarter. Kimelman & Baird LLC now owns 100 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $39,000 after purchasing an additional 30 shares during the period. Finally, Trivant Custom Portfolio Group LLC boosted its position in Caterpillar by 130.0% during the 4th quarter. Trivant Custom Portfolio Group LLC now owns 115 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $42,000 after purchasing an additional 65 shares during the period. Institutional investors and hedge funds 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.