Caterpillar’s fourth-quarter sales dropped 15% as an unchecked pandemic continued to sap demand for big machinery, but the damage was not as bad as most had expected.
Sales were $11.24 billion, down significantly from last year's $13.14 billion, yet far better than Wall Street projections of $11.18 billion, according to a survey of analysts by Zacks Investment Research.
Construction sales fell 16% in North America and they were basically flat in Europe, Africa, and the Middle East. The Deerfield, Illinois, company earned $780 million, or $1.42 per share, in the quarter.
Excluding one-time charges, however, per share earnings were $2.12, which is 66 cents better than industry analysts had expected.