TD Cowen Boosts Caterpillar (NYSE:CAT) Price Target to $340.00

Caterpillar (NYSE:CAT) had its price target lifted by TD Cowen from $338.00 to $340.00 in a research report sent to investors on Friday morning, Marketbeat reports. TD Cowen currently has a buy rating on the industrial products company’s stock.

A number of other research firms have also issued reports on CAT. Evercore ISI lowered Caterpillar from an outperform rating to an in-line rating and boosted their price objective for the company from $321.00 to $338.00 in a research report on Tuesday, February 20th. Morgan Stanley assumed coverage on Caterpillar in a research report on Monday, January 8th. They set an equal weight rating and a $270.00 price objective for the company. Citigroup boosted their price objective on Caterpillar from $255.00 to $340.00 and gave the company a neutral rating in a research report on Monday, February 12th. StockNews.com lowered Caterpillar from a strong-buy rating to a buy rating in a research report on Tuesday, February 20th. Finally, Stifel Nicolaus lowered Caterpillar from a buy rating to a hold rating and boosted their price objective for the company from $293.00 to $350.00 in a research report on Friday. One analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, ten have given a hold rating and eight have issued a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the company currently has an average rating of Hold and a consensus price target of $310.83.

Caterpillar Price Performance

Shares of CAT opened at $343.37 on Friday. The firm has a market cap of $171.48 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 15.50, a PEG ratio of 1.51 and a beta of 1.17. The stock has a 50 day moving average of $350.10 and a 200-day moving average of $300.80. The company has a current ratio of 1.35, a quick ratio of 0.87 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.41. Caterpillar has a 52 week low of $204.04 and a 52 week high of $382.01.

Caterpillar (NYSE:CAT) last issued its earnings results on Thursday, April 25th. The industrial products company reported $5.60 EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $5.12 by $0.48. Caterpillar had a return on equity of 58.61% and a net margin of 16.79%. The company had revenue of $15.80 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $16.07 billion. As a group, analysts forecast that Caterpillar will post 21.3 EPS for the current year.

Caterpillar Announces Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, May 20th. Stockholders of record on Monday, April 22nd will be issued a $1.30 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, April 19th. This represents a $5.20 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.51%. Caterpillar’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 23.48%.

Insider Activity

In other news, Director David Maclennan acquired 350 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Friday, February 23rd. The stock was acquired at an average price of $323.37 per share, for a total transaction of $113,179.50. Following the completion of the acquisition, the director now directly owns 5,238 shares in the company, valued at approximately $1,693,812.06. The acquisition was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this link. In other news, insider Anthony D. Fassino sold 4,575 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on 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 completion of the sale, the insider now owns 23,474 shares in the company, valued at $7,741,725.20. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available at this link. Also, Director David Maclennan bought 350 shares of Caterpillar stock in a transaction dated Friday, February 23rd. The shares were bought at an average cost of $323.37 per share, with a total value of $113,179.50. Following the completion of the acquisition, the director now owns 5,238 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $1,693,812.06. The disclosure for this purchase can be found here. Insiders sold a total of 35,769 shares of company stock worth $11,508,906 over the last 90 days. 0.33% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Caterpillar

Several hedge funds have recently modified their holdings of the stock. Vigilare Wealth Management purchased a new stake in shares of Caterpillar during the first quarter valued at $238,000. Finer Wealth Management Inc. lifted its holdings in shares of Caterpillar by 4.0% during the first quarter. Finer Wealth Management Inc. now owns 10,170 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $3,726,000 after purchasing an additional 395 shares during the last quarter. K.J. Harrison & Partners Inc lifted its holdings in shares of Caterpillar by 1.1% during the first quarter. K.J. Harrison & Partners Inc now owns 4,044 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $1,482,000 after purchasing an additional 44 shares during the last quarter. BayBridge Capital Group LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Caterpillar during the first quarter valued at $506,000. Finally, McGuire Investment Group LLC lifted its holdings in shares of Caterpillar by 1.2% during the first quarter. McGuire Investment Group LLC now owns 22,475 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $8,236,000 after purchasing an additional 266 shares during the last quarter. 70.98% of the stock is 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.