LONDON (ShareCast) - (WebFG News) - Caterpillar upped its 2018 profit outlook on Tuesday after the heavy-duty equipment behemoth beat the Street with its first-quarter earnings amid continued strong global demand for its equipment.
The ‎Illinois-based company reported net profits of $2.74 per share that were well above the $2.04 forecast by Wall Street analysts.

Full-year earnings guidance was lifted to a range of $9.75-10.75 per share, versus the $7.75-8.75 it had projected earlier. Caterpillar's outlook includes almost $400m worth of restructuring costs, unchanged from its previous outlook, though potential impacts from future geopolitical risks and increased trade restrictions not included.

Revenues of $12.9bn for the first quarter surpassed consensus estimates of $11.96bn thanks to Caterpillar's better than expected sales volume and improved prices, which partially offset material cost increases coming from higher commodity prices.

Volumes were driven by strong end-user demand and favourable changes in dealer inventories, the company said in its statement, with higher sales volume across the three primary segments with the largest increase in construction industries.

"The combination of strength in many of our end markets and our team's continued focus on operational excellence - including strong cost control - helped us deliver improved margins and a record first-quarter profit," said Caterpillar's chief executive Jim Umpleby.

As of 1320 BST, shares had gained 3.84% in pre-market trading to $159.91 each.

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