Caterpillar Q2 earnings: CEO dubs AI a ‘positive thing for business’

Shares of Caterpillar Inc (NYSE: CAT) are trading at a record high this morning after the equipment manufacturer reported its financial results for the second quarter that handily topped Street estimates.

Caterpillar’s view on the current quarter

The stock is up even though Caterpillar said its sales and profit margin will be down sequentially in the current quarter. According to CEO Jim Umpleby:  

Wall Street currently has a consensus “overweight” rating on the industrial stock that is already up more than 40% versus its year-to-date low.

Among its notable bulls is the famed investor and Mad Money host Jim Cramer.

Caterpillar Q2 earnings snapshot

• Earned $2.92 billion versus the year-ago $1.67 billion
• Per-share earnings also climbed from $3.13 to $5.67
• Adjusted EPS printed at $5.55 as per the press release
• Revenue jumped 21.6% year-on-year to $17.32 billion
• Consensus was $4.57 a share on $16.46 billion in revenue

On CNBC’s “Squawk on the Street”, the Chief Executive also dubbed the rising focus on artificial intelligence a meaningful benefit for Caterpillar.

Caterpillar noted broad-based sales growth

Price realization and sales volume were a $1.42 billion and a $1.77 billion benefit in the recently concluded quarter.

Most importantly, thought Caterpillar noted a better-than-expected double-digit percentage growth in each of its business segments. CEO Umpleby added in his interview with CNBC:

Caterpillar improved its operating profit margin in the second quarter by an exciting 750 basis points to 21.1%.