Caterpillar Inc. $CAT is Westchester Capital Management Inc.’s 3rd Largest Position

Westchester Capital Management Inc. lowered its position in shares of Caterpillar Inc. (NYSE:CAT) by 4.4% in the 4th quarter, HoldingsChannel reports. The institutional investor owned 59,102 shares of the industrial products company’s stock after selling 2,704 shares during the quarter. Caterpillar accounts for about 7.0% of Westchester Capital Management Inc.’s holdings, making the stock its 3rd biggest holding. Westchester Capital Management Inc.’s holdings in Caterpillar were worth $33,858,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other institutional investors have also added to or reduced their stakes in CAT. Wellington Management Group LLP boosted its position in Caterpillar by 3,949.8% during the 3rd quarter. Wellington Management Group LLP now owns 5,228,058 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $2,494,568,000 after buying an additional 5,098,964 shares during the period. Capital International Investors purchased a new stake in Caterpillar during the 4th quarter valued at $1,225,317,000. Northwestern Mutual Wealth Management Co. boosted its position in Caterpillar by 573.1% during the 4th quarter. Northwestern Mutual Wealth Management Co. now owns 1,504,612 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $861,947,000 after buying an additional 1,281,087 shares during the period. Amundi boosted its position in Caterpillar by 24.3% during the 3rd quarter. Amundi now owns 2,375,710 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $1,176,870,000 after buying an additional 464,036 shares during the period. Finally, Vanguard Group Inc. boosted its position in Caterpillar by 1.0% during the 4th quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 46,385,185 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $26,572,681,000 after buying an additional 442,164 shares during the period. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 70.98% of the company’s stock.

Caterpillar Stock Performance

Shares of CAT opened at $910.78 on Friday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.64, a current ratio of 1.35 and a quick ratio of 0.81. Caterpillar Inc. has a one year low of $355.70 and a one year high of $946.83. The company has a 50-day simple moving average of $851.85 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $726.64. The firm has a market capitalization of $419.50 billion, a PE ratio of 45.34, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.77 and a beta of 1.59.

Caterpillar (NYSE:CAT) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, April 30th. The industrial products company reported $5.54 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $4.65 by $0.89. Caterpillar had a net margin of 13.33% and a return on equity of 48.21%. The company had revenue of $17.42 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $16.53 billion. During the same period last year, the company posted $4.25 EPS. Caterpillar’s revenue was up 22.2% on a year-over-year basis. On average, analysts anticipate that Caterpillar Inc. will post 24.69 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Caterpillar Increases Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, August 19th. Investors of record on Monday, July 20th will be given a dividend of $1.63 per share. This is an increase from Caterpillar’s previous quarterly dividend of $1.51. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, July 20th. This represents a $6.52 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 0.7%. Caterpillar’s dividend payout ratio is 30.06%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several brokerages have weighed in on CAT. Weiss Ratings reissued a “buy (b-)” rating on shares of Caterpillar in a research report on Friday, May 8th. Evercore reaffirmed an “outperform” rating and set a $1,103.00 target price on shares of Caterpillar in a research note on Monday, May 11th. Williams Trading set a $825.00 price target on shares of Caterpillar in a research note on Tuesday, March 10th. Wells Fargo & Company raised their price objective on shares of Caterpillar from $960.00 to $1,050.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a report on Friday, May 1st. Finally, Oppenheimer set a $980.00 price objective on shares of Caterpillar and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a report on Friday, May 1st. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, sixteen have assigned a Buy rating and nine have assigned a Hold rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, Caterpillar presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $933.27.

Insider Activity at Caterpillar

In related news, insider Lange Bob De sold 24,222 shares of Caterpillar stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, May 6th. The shares were sold at an average price of $922.92, for a total transaction of $22,354,968.24. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider directly owned 86,029 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $79,397,884.68. This trade represents a 21.97% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available at this hyperlink. Also, CFO Andrew R. J. Bonfield sold 15,674 shares of Caterpillar stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, May 6th. The shares were sold at an average price of $918.71, for a total transaction of $14,399,860.54. Following the transaction, the chief financial officer directly owned 52,935 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $48,631,913.85. This trade represents a 22.85% decrease in their ownership of the stock. Additional details regarding this sale are available in the official SEC disclosure. Insiders sold a total of 95,773 shares of company stock worth $87,642,635 over the last 90 days. 0.33% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

Key Caterpillar News

Here are the key news stories impacting Caterpillar this week:

• Positive Sentiment: Caterpillar raised its quarterly dividend by 8% to $1.63 per share, extending its dividend-growth streak to 32 consecutive years and signaling confidence in cash generation and future returns to shareholders.
• Positive Sentiment: Analysts at Erste Group lifted FY2026 and FY2027 earnings estimates for Caterpillar, reflecting expectations for stronger profitability ahead.
• Positive Sentiment: Caterpillar was highlighted on Zacks’ “best momentum stocks” list, which can reinforce bullish trader interest and momentum buying.
• Positive Sentiment: Recent bullish commentary pointed to strong Q1 results, including 22% revenue growth and a backlog of $62.7 billion, suggesting healthy demand across Caterpillar’s core markets.
• Neutral Sentiment: Caterpillar and Austal announced a global value agreement, but the available details do not clearly indicate a material near-term financial impact for CAT. Austal and Caterpillar in Global Value Agreement
• Negative Sentiment: Some market commentary warned that Caterpillar’s recent run-up leaves the stock vulnerable to a reversal on valuation concerns after a sharp move higher.
• Negative Sentiment: The stock also recently pulled back from its year-to-date high, with technical traders citing a possible double-top pattern, which may be limiting near-term upside.

About Caterpillar

Caterpillar Inc is a global manufacturer of construction and mining equipment, diesel and natural gas engines, industrial gas turbines and locomotives. The company’s product portfolio includes earthmoving machines such as excavators, bulldozers, wheel loaders and off‑highway trucks, as well as a range of power generation products including generator sets and power systems for industrial and commercial use. Caterpillar serves customers across heavy construction, mining, energy, transportation and related industries with both equipment and integrated technology solutions.

In addition to manufacturing, Caterpillar provides a broad range of aftermarket parts and support services, including maintenance, repair, remanufacturing and fleet management tools.