Caterpillar’s Shares Tumble on Disappointing Profit Outlook

FOR EXPORT: Rows of the Caterpillar Challenger MT765C farm tractors, ideally suited to row-crop work, sit on on the docks of the Port of Baltimore's Dundalk Terminal on Aug. 27, 2009, waiting to be loaded for export by ship, in Baltimore, Md. Paul J. Richards/AFP/Getty Images

CHICAGO—Caterpillar Inc. disappointed investors on Oct. 23 by not raising its 2018 earnings forecast yet again, raising fears that the heavy-duty equipment maker may be signaling a slowdown despite posting better-than-expected quarterly profits.

The stock tumbled after the opening bell on Wall Street, weighing on the overall U.S. stock market. The stock was last trading down 9 percent at $117.11. The Dow Jones Industrial Average, which includes Caterpillar, was down about 440 points on Oct. 23.