rzelich/iStock via Getty Images
Caterpillar’s (NYSE:CAT) shares fell 4% in premarket trading Thursday after the maker of heavy machinery and construction equipment reported weaker quarterly sales.
Sales dipped about 0.6% from a year earlier to $15.8 billion in the three-month period through March 31, compared with the consensus estimate of about $16 billion.
Profit adjusted for one-time items was $5.60 a share, beating the average estimate of $5.13 a share among Wall Street analysts. The company’s adjusted operating profit rose 5% from a year earlier, while its share count fell with buybacks.
“I’m pleased with our team’s performance that resulted in higher adjusted operating profit margin, record adjusted profit per share and strong Machinery, Energy & Transportation free cash flow,” Jim Umpleby, chairman and chief executive of Caterpillar (CAT), said in a statement. “Our strong balance sheet and ME&T free cash flow allowed us to deploy a record $5.1 billion of cash for share repurchases and dividends in the first quarter.”
Caterpillar said revenue this year should be similar to 2023 results, while analysts forecast a slight gain to $67.3 billion.
Source link
