8-KRegulation FD

CATERPILLAR INC 8-K Report, Regulation FD Disclosure (Jul 27, 2018)

Filed July 27, 2018For Securities:CAT

Summary

Caterpillar Inc. (CAT) filed an 8-K on July 27, 2018, to provide supplemental information on retail sales of machines and power systems. This data, based on voluntary reports from independent dealers and OEMs, offers an approximate indication of trends and magnitude, not a substitute for audited financial statements. The report highlights that dealer sales to end-users can lag Caterpillar's sales to dealers, making this supplemental data useful for understanding business dynamics. The provided statistics cover rolling three-month periods ending in April, May, and June 2018, comparing them to the same periods in the prior year. Across all segments, Caterpillar experienced positive retail sales growth globally in the rolling three-month periods, with significant year-over-year increases noted in most geographic regions and industry applications. This suggests a generally favorable market environment for Caterpillar's products during the reported periods.

Key Highlights

  • 1Caterpillar is providing supplemental, unaudited data on retail sales to end-users from dealers and OEMs, intended to offer insight into business trends.
  • 2The data covers rolling three-month periods ending April, May, and June 2018, comparing year-over-year performance.
  • 3Global retail sales of total machines showed consistent positive growth across the rolling three-month periods, ranging from a 24% to 28% increase year-over-year.
  • 4Significant year-over-year retail sales growth for machines was observed in the Asia/Pacific region (up to 37%), EAME (up to 23%), Latin America (up to 56%), and North America (up to 25%).
  • 5The Resource Industries segment displayed strong growth, particularly in Latin America (up to 179%) and EAME (up to 51%) in its rolling three-month retail machine sales.
  • 6Construction Industries also saw robust growth, with Latin America leading at up to 26%, followed by Asia/Pacific (up to 44%) and North America (up to 21%).
  • 7The Energy & Transportation segment reported a strong overall increase of 14% in its rolling three-month retail sales, driven primarily by the Oil & Gas sector (up to 43%), despite declines in Transportation.

Frequently Asked Questions

This 8-K filing is for Regulation FD Disclosure and provides supplemental, unaudited information regarding Caterpillar's retail sales of machines and power systems to end-users and OEMs. This data is intended to help investors better understand business trends and the industries Caterpillar serves, particularly given the timing difference between Caterpillar's sales to dealers and dealers' sales to end-users.

The data is based on unaudited reports voluntarily provided by Caterpillar's independent dealers and OEMs. These reports are not subject to Caterpillar's internal controls over financial reporting, and therefore, the data may not be accurate or complete. Caterpillar emphasizes that this information is intended solely to convey an approximate indication of trends, direction, and magnitude and is not a substitute for their audited financial statements.

These statistics represent the retail sales of machines and power systems to end-users and OEMs for a rolling three-month period, compared to the same three-month period in the prior year. The data is reported in constant dollars and is based on unit sales as reported primarily by dealers. This provides a snapshot of recent sales performance trends.

Globally, all regions showed positive growth in machine retail sales. Latin America and Asia/Pacific showed particularly strong year-over-year increases in machine retail sales for both Resource and Construction Industries. For Energy & Transportation, the Oil & Gas sector demonstrated significant growth, while Power Generation also saw increases, offsetting declines in Transportation.