Caterpillar's net sales dropped in 2020

Caterpillar Inc (NASDAQ: CAT), the US based manufacturer of construction and mining equipment, experienced a drop in sales and revenue in 2020 compared to the previous fiscal mainly due to reduced end user demand and changes in dealer inventories. The company experienced a 22% drop in net revenue in 2020 compared to 2019.

Caterpillar's net sales in 2020 remained $41.7 billion compared to $53.8 billion in 2019. The company experienced heavy drop in sales and revenue across the North American and Latin American markets. It experienced drops in revenue across all its markets, and the first two markets experienced the heaviest declined.

Sales and revenues for the fourth quarter of 2020 were $11.2 billion, a 15% decrease compared with $13.1 billion in the fourth quarter of 2019. Operating profit margin was 12.3% for the fourth quarter of 2020, compared with 14.1% for the fourth quarter of 2019. Fourth-quarter 2020 profit per share was $1.42, compared with $1.97 profit per share in the fourth quarter of 2019. Adjusted profit per share in the fourth quarter of 2020 was $2.12, compared with fourth-quarter 2019 adjusted profit per share of $2.71. Fourth-quarter 2020 adjusted profit per share of $2.12 reflects strong operational performance and a lower effective tax rate.

Caterpillar fourth quarter 2020 release.

Full-year sales and revenues in 2020 were $41.7 billion, down 22% compared with $53.8 billion in 2019. The sales decline reflected lower end-user demand and dealers reducing their inventories by $2.9 billion in 2020. Operating profit margin was 10.9% for 2020, compared with 15.4% for 2019. Full-year profit was $5.46 per share in 2020, compared with profit of $10.74 per share in 2019. Adjusted profit per share in 2020 was $6.56, compared with adjusted profit per share of $11.40 in 2019.

Caterpillar fourth quarter 2020 release.

The company spent $1.4 billion on research and development in 2020 compared to $1.7 billion in 2019.

The average number of Caterpillar employees at the end of the year was 99,100.

Net profit of the company dropped to $3 billion in 2020 compared to $6.1 billion in 2019.

Net sales of the company in North America dropped by 29% in 2020 compared to the previous year. The net revenue of the company from the North America region dropped by 29% in 2020 reaching $18.2 billion compared to $25.8 billion in 2019. The company generated only $3.4 billion from the Latin American region in 2020 compared to $4.7 billion in 2019.