Caterpillar Beats Earnings and Revenues in 4Q

Caterpillar Inc. (CAT) announced its fourth quarter (4Q) earnings for fiscal year 2013 (FY13) in pre-market hours, and beat analysts’ estimates for revenues and earnings per share (EPS). The stock is trading is up more than 6%.

The heavy machinery manufacturer posted EPS of $1.54, beating EPS estimates by $0.26. Revenues were down 10.5% year-over-year (YoY), coming in at $14.4 billion, but beat estimates by $790 million for the quarter. The company also announced the intention to complete its $7.5 billion buyback program over the first quarter of 2014, and approved an additional $10 billion in buybacks that will conclude sometime in 2018.

Caterpillar, whose financial performance has been suffering since the beginning of the year, came through at the end after implementing severe cost-cutting measures. The company closed down some plants and reduced activity at others, and laid off roughly 13,000 employees, as it missed its estimates quarter after quarter.

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Caterpillar: Inventory Build-Up Causing Orders To Dry Up

Caterpillar Inc. (CAT) is the bellwether for the machinery manufacturing industry. It designs, manufactures, markets and sells heavy machinery and equipment to the construction, mining and power generation industries.

The company operates on a global scale, and its performance is tied to macroeconomic conditions in different countries worldwide. For this reason, Caterpillar’s order growth and dealer inventory levels are considered a leading economic indicator.

CAT’s three business segments – Construction Industries, Power Systems, and Resources – together accounted for almost 94% of the company’s overall revenues in 2012. Each segment contributed roughly a third of total revenues, and a slowdown in any one segment can affect the company’s bottom-line significantly.

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