The blue-chip heavy machinery manufacturer posted a top- and bottom-line beat
It's another day of earnings reports, and this time around there's the good, the bad, and plenty of ugly. Among the names stepping into the quarterly confessional this morning, Caterpillar Inc. (NYSE:CAT) is a bright spot. The blue-chip construction name shared third-quarter profits of $3.16 on $14.33 billion in revenue, topping analysts' estimates. Caterpillar said it benefited from increases to its equipment prices and rising energy prices. In response, CAT is up 7.9% at $212.50.
Already, Caterpillar options are flying off the shelves with 20,000 calls and 15,000 puts exchanged so far, which is four times the intraday average. The two most popular positions by far are the weekly 10/28 220- and 215-strike calls, with positions being opened at each.
Today's pop puts CAT at its highest level since mid-June and back above its 320-day moving average for the first time since the stock suffered a bear gap below here on June 10. The security has seen an incredible rebound this month, up 30.2% in October. This could mark its biggest monthly jump since July 2009 when the stock added 33.4%, should these gains hold.
Analysts have yet to chime in, but there could be room for bull notes. Of the 16 in coverage, eight call CAT a "buy" or better, while nine still say "hold" or worse. Meanwhile, the 12-month consensus price target of $106.2.7% is a slight deficit to current levels.