CAT Goes Splat After 8-K Release

Joel Elconin is the co-host of Benzinga's #PreMarket Prep, a daily trading idea radio show.

Caterpillar Inc. CAT shares were trading lower by $2.40 (3 percent) at $79.82 in Wednesday's session. The catalyst for the decline is information from its 8-K, revealing Global Rolling three-month retail sales down 14 percent in June.

The release instigated a sharply lower open ($81 vs. Tuesday's close of $82.22) and managed only a $0.12 pop to $81.12 before moving lower.

So far, the decline has found intra-day support at $79.43 and is attempting to reclaim the $80 level. The current low coincides with a pair of lows from April 1 ($79.39) and April 2 ($79.40).

Caterpillar will announce Q2 earnings before the bell on Thursday. The Street sees EPS estimates of $1.26 on revenues of $12.67 billion. The company has beat estimates for EPS in five of the last six quarters.