Caterpillar posted a record-breaking second quarter profit. The company’s profit per-share increased 67-percent to $2.54. Sales and revenues were also up, setting an all-time record  of more than $17 billion dollars. Caterpillar Chief Financial Officer Ed Rapp says the results rest on the company’s diverse product line and geographic footprint. He says new machine sales were almost 50/50 between the developed and developing world.
“If you think back to 2010-2011 they were heavily boosted by rapid growth in recovery out of the recession in the developing parts of the world,” Rapp says. “If you look at sales this year, actually a big part of the growth has been supported by growth in the U.S. as replacement demand and those things have kicked off.”
Rapp says the balance the company strikes is helping it navigate the plentiful and various uncertainties in and around the globe including the U.S., Europe and China. Cat is increasing its profit per share outlook for 2012 by ten cents, but is narrowing its top sales and revenue outlook $2 billion with the top potential now at $70 Billion. Caterpillar added more than 24,000 employees over the 2nd quarter. Cat now employs more than 132,000 people in full-time jobs around the globe.