Caterpillar Has a Big 3Q, But Wall Street Senses Pessimism

In this July 24, 2017 file photo, a Caterpillar excavator rests at a housing construction site in North Andover, Mass. Caterpillar Inc. reports earnings Tuesday, Oct. 23, 2018. (AP Photo / Elise Amendola, FIle)In this July 24, 2017 file photo, a Caterpillar excavator rests at a housing construction site in North Andover, Mass. Caterpillar Inc. reports earnings Tuesday, Oct. 23, 2018. (AP Photo / Elise Amendola, FIle)

DEERFIELD, Ill. (AP) — Caterpillar beat most profit and revenue expectations in the third quarter, but company shares were punished Tuesday when Wall Street sensed some pessimism in the company's outlook, which remains unchanged.

Thanks to our sponsors:

View all sponsors

Shares dropped 9 percent in early trading, with losses compounded by a global sell-off on stock markets.

Caterpillar Inc. still anticipates full-year adjusted earnings of $11 to $12 per share. This is in range of the $11.64 per share that analysts polled by FactSet predict, but the construction equipment company had raised the forecast twice this year and investors appeared to expect more of the same.

For the three months that ended Sept. 30, Caterpillar earned $1.73 billion, or $2.88 per share. A year earlier, the Deerfield, Illinois-based company earned $1.06 billion, or $1.77 per share.

Stripping out restructuring costs and a tax benefit, earnings were $2.86 per share. Analysts were calling for $2.84 per share.

Revenue climbed to $13.51 billion from $11.41 billion, with sales rising in its construction industries, resource industries, financial products and energy and transportation segments. Wall Street expected $13.26 billion in revenue.


Related stories:

Manufacturing, Optimism Rising Nationwide as Illinois Lags Behind

Turbulent Time for Stocks as Investors Eye End of Historic Bull Run

Sears Files for Bankruptcy. What That Really Means.


Thanks to our sponsors:

View all sponsors

Thanks to our sponsors:

View all sponsors