Jan 31 (Reuters) - Caterpillar Inc (CAT.N) on Tuesday reported a drop in quarterly profit as increasing manufacturing costs related to materials and freight pressured the heavy machinery maker's margins.
Fourth-quarter earnings per share slid by 29%. Adjusted profit for the quarter ended December rose to $3.86 per share from $2.69 a year earlier.
(This story has been corrected to remove reference/comparison to analysts' estimates throughout and to add that fourth-quarter earnings per share slid by 29% in second paragraph)
Reporting by Aishwarya Nair in Bengaluru; Editing by Maju Samuel
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