Caterpillar Considering Small Acquisitions, Oberhelman Tells Bloomberg

Caterpillar chairman and CEO Doug Oberhelman told Bloomberg Television the company is considering making some acquisitions in 2015, although he said the companies Caterpillar is looking at are small. Bloomberg reported that a JPMorgan Chase & Co. analyst said, after meeting with Oberhelman, that Caterpillar is likely to look at deals focused on mining, oil and gas and electric power.

Oberhelman said that Caterpillar has avoided acquisitions of companies serving the energy industry in recent years because valuations were too high. However, with the recent drop in oil prices, such opportunities might be more affordable during the next two years.

Caterpillar’s sales have declined the past two years because of lower mining-related sales. However, the company is forecasting flat to slightly higher revenues in 2015.