Empirical Asset Management LLC Grows Stock Position in Caterpillar Inc. $CAT

Empirical Asset Management LLC raised its holdings in Caterpillar Inc. (NYSE:CAT) by 79.8% in the 3rd quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm owned 2,670 shares of the industrial products company’s stock after buying an additional 1,185 shares during the quarter. Empirical Asset Management LLC’s holdings in Caterpillar were worth $1,274,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other large investors have also modified their holdings of the company. WealthShield Partners LLC increased its position in Caterpillar by 1.6% during the third quarter. WealthShield Partners LLC now owns 1,122 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $535,000 after purchasing an additional 18 shares during the last quarter. one8zero8 LLC increased its holdings in shares of Caterpillar by 3.2% during the 3rd quarter. one8zero8 LLC now owns 619 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $295,000 after buying an additional 19 shares during the last quarter. Abacus Planning Group Inc. raised its position in shares of Caterpillar by 0.6% in the 3rd quarter. Abacus Planning Group Inc. now owns 3,214 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $1,534,000 after buying an additional 20 shares during the period. Cyr Financial Inc. boosted its holdings in Caterpillar by 2.5% in the third quarter. Cyr Financial Inc. now owns 811 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $387,000 after acquiring an additional 20 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Coastwise Capital Group LLC grew its position in Caterpillar by 1.8% during the third quarter. Coastwise Capital Group LLC now owns 1,168 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $557,000 after acquiring an additional 21 shares during the period. 70.98% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of research firms have recently commented on CAT. Truist Financial raised their price objective on Caterpillar from $729.00 to $786.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Monday, February 2nd. Wolfe Research increased their target price on shares of Caterpillar from $470.00 to $670.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research report on Friday, January 2nd. DA Davidson boosted their price objective on shares of Caterpillar from $569.00 to $650.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research note on Monday, February 2nd. Bank of America increased their price objective on shares of Caterpillar from $735.00 to $825.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Tuesday, February 10th. Finally, UBS Group reissued a “neutral” rating and issued a $677.00 target price on shares of Caterpillar in a research note on Monday, February 2nd. Sixteen analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, seven have given a Hold rating and one has given a Sell rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the company has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $702.95.

Insider Transactions at Caterpillar

In other Caterpillar news, CFO Andrew R. J. Bonfield sold 10,000 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Wednesday, December 31st. The shares were sold at an average price of $575.06, for a total transaction of $5,750,600.00. Following the completion of the sale, the chief financial officer owned 45,460 shares in the company, valued at $26,142,227.60. The trade was a 18.03% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this link. Also, insider Anthony D. Fassino sold 10,671 shares of the stock in a transaction on Monday, February 2nd. The stock was sold at an average price of $680.45, for a total transaction of $7,261,081.95. Following the sale, the insider directly owned 41,151 shares in the company, valued at $28,001,197.95. This trade represents a 20.59% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. Insiders have sold a total of 143,450 shares of company stock valued at $98,245,065 over the last quarter. Insiders own 0.33% of the company’s stock.

Caterpillar Stock Performance

Shares of CAT stock opened at $768.20 on Wednesday. The stock has a market capitalization of $357.43 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 40.82, a PEG ratio of 1.79 and a beta of 1.58. Caterpillar Inc. has a one year low of $267.30 and a one year high of $789.81. The company’s 50-day simple moving average is $656.64 and its 200-day simple moving average is $558.44. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.44, a quick ratio of 0.94 and a current ratio of 1.44.

Caterpillar (NYSE:CAT) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, January 29th. The industrial products company reported $5.16 earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $4.67 by $0.49. Caterpillar had a return on equity of 45.76% and a net margin of 13.14%.The firm had revenue of $19.13 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $17.81 billion. During the same period in the previous year, the company earned $5.14 earnings per share. Caterpillar’s quarterly revenue was up 17.9% on a year-over-year basis. Equities analysts anticipate that Caterpillar Inc. will post 19.86 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Caterpillar Announces Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, February 19th. Investors of record on Tuesday, January 20th were paid a dividend of $1.51 per share. The ex-dividend date was Tuesday, January 20th. This represents a $6.04 annualized dividend and a yield of 0.8%. Caterpillar’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 32.09%.

Key Caterpillar News

Here are the key news stories impacting Caterpillar this week:

• Positive Sentiment: Erste Group raised its FY2026 EPS estimate for CAT, indicating analysts are modeling stronger profit growth which can support higher share valuations. Caterpillar FY2026 EPS Estimate Lifted by Erste Group Bank
• Positive Sentiment: Zacks highlights Caterpillar’s earnings growth and price strength, reinforcing investor interest on momentum and fundamentals after recent quarterly beats. Earnings Growth & Price Strength Make Caterpillar (CAT) a Stock to Watch
• Positive Sentiment: Caterpillar Venture Capital (a CAT subsidiary) backed ElevenEs’ Series B first closing — a strategic venture investment that signals Caterpillar is allocating capital to adjacent technology/commodity trading innovations that could support long‑term growth. ElevenEs held 1st Closing of its Series B Investment Round Backed by Caterpillar Venture Capital Inc.
• Neutral Sentiment: Benzinga’s roundup of analyst expectations summarizes mixed forward views — analysts are bullish on machinery demand but note cyclicality and exposure to commodity cycles (useful context but not an immediate catalyst). Analyst Expectations For Caterpillar’s Future
• Neutral Sentiment: A Yahoo Finance piece assesses CAT’s valuation after strong short‑ and long‑term gains — it reminds investors that the stock now trades at a premium (PE ~39.7), raising sensitivity to any slowdown in orders or margins. Assessing Caterpillar (CAT) Valuation After Powerful Short And Long Term Share Price Gains

Caterpillar Company Profile

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.