Caterpillar (NYSE:CAT) Sets New 1-Year High – Should You Buy?

Caterpillar Inc. (NYSE:CAT)’s stock price reached a new 52-week high on Monday . The stock traded as high as $630.98 and last traded at $629.1380, with a volume of 858033 shares trading hands. The stock had previously closed at $617.62.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of research analysts recently issued reports on the company. Hsbc Global Res upgraded Caterpillar from a “hold” rating to a “strong-buy” rating in a research report on Thursday, November 6th. Wolfe Research lifted their price target on Caterpillar from $470.00 to $670.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research report on Friday, January 2nd. Royal Bank Of Canada started coverage on shares of Caterpillar in a research report on Wednesday, October 22nd. They set a “sector perform” rating and a $560.00 target price on the stock. Weiss Ratings reaffirmed a “buy (b)” rating on shares of Caterpillar in a report on Monday, December 29th. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. lifted their target price on Caterpillar from $650.00 to $730.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a report on Thursday, October 30th. Three equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, fifteen have assigned a Buy rating, six have given a Hold rating and one has issued a Sell rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $618.70.

Caterpillar Price Performance

The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.34, a quick ratio of 0.86 and a current ratio of 1.38. The stock has a market capitalization of $294.60 billion, a P/E ratio of 32.32, a PEG ratio of 2.39 and a beta of 1.57. The business has a fifty day simple moving average of $580.50 and a 200-day simple moving average of $496.54.

Caterpillar (NYSE:CAT) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Monday, November 3rd. The industrial products company reported $4.95 EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $4.52 by $0.43. The firm had revenue of $17.64 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $16.72 billion. Caterpillar had a return on equity of 47.16% and a net margin of 14.34%.The company’s quarterly revenue was up 9.5% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the prior year, the business posted $5.17 earnings per share. Sell-side analysts expect that Caterpillar Inc. will post 19.86 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Caterpillar Announces Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, February 19th. Investors of record on Tuesday, January 20th will be given a $1.51 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Tuesday, January 20th. This represents a $6.04 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.0%. Caterpillar’s dividend payout ratio is 31.01%.

Insider Activity at Caterpillar

In other news, CAO William E. Schaupp sold 1,200 shares of Caterpillar stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, November 5th. The shares were sold at an average price of $572.22, for a total transaction of $686,664.00. Following the completion of the sale, the chief accounting officer owned 1,323 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $757,047.06. The trade was a 47.56% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this link. Also, insider Jason Kaiser sold 10,707 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Tuesday, November 11th. The stock was sold at an average price of $563.60, for a total value of $6,034,465.20. Following the sale, the insider owned 8,649 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $4,874,576.40. This represents a 55.32% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale is available in the SEC filing. Insiders have sold 54,729 shares of company stock worth $31,084,308 in the last 90 days. Company insiders own 0.33% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Trading of Caterpillar

Institutional investors have recently bought and sold shares of the business. IFS Advisors LLC purchased a new position in shares of Caterpillar in the fourth quarter worth about $31,000. Rialto Wealth Management LLC boosted its position in Caterpillar by 47.4% in the 4th quarter. Rialto Wealth Management LLC now owns 56 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $32,000 after buying an additional 18 shares during the period. Marquette Asset Management LLC increased its holdings in Caterpillar by 1,060.0% during the 3rd quarter. Marquette Asset Management LLC now owns 58 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $28,000 after purchasing an additional 53 shares during the period. Noble Wealth Management PBC grew its holdings in Caterpillar by 140.0% during the 4th quarter. Noble Wealth Management PBC now owns 60 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $34,000 after acquiring an additional 35 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Joseph Group Capital Management purchased a new position in Caterpillar in the third quarter valued at $32,000. 70.98% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

About Caterpillar

Caterpillar Inc is a global manufacturer of construction and mining equipment, diesel and natural gas engines, industrial gas turbines and locomotives. The company’s product portfolio includes earthmoving machines such as excavators, bulldozers, wheel loaders and off‑highway trucks, as well as a range of power generation products including generator sets and power systems for industrial and commercial use. Caterpillar serves customers across heavy construction, mining, energy, transportation and related industries with both equipment and integrated technology solutions.

In addition to manufacturing, Caterpillar provides a broad range of aftermarket parts and support services, including maintenance, repair, remanufacturing and fleet management tools.