Columbia Bank Decreases Position in Caterpillar Inc. $CAT

Columbia Bank lowered its position in Caterpillar Inc. (NYSE:CAT) by 8.0% in the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund owned 6,629 shares of the industrial products company’s stock after selling 574 shares during the quarter. Caterpillar makes up approximately 1.1% of Columbia Bank’s portfolio, making the stock its 21st biggest position. Columbia Bank’s holdings in Caterpillar were worth $3,798,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Illinois Municipal Retirement Fund lifted its stake in Caterpillar by 7.3% in the third quarter. Illinois Municipal Retirement Fund now owns 17,262 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $8,237,000 after buying an additional 1,181 shares during the last quarter. State of New Jersey Common Pension Fund D lifted its stake in Caterpillar by 2.5% in the third quarter. State of New Jersey Common Pension Fund D now owns 165,677 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $79,053,000 after buying an additional 4,010 shares during the last quarter. Juno Financial Group LLC purchased a new stake in Caterpillar in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $877,000. ARK Investment Management LLC lifted its stake in Caterpillar by 11.7% in the third quarter. ARK Investment Management LLC now owns 31,144 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $14,860,000 after buying an additional 3,268 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Gotham Asset Management LLC lifted its stake in Caterpillar by 19.1% in the third quarter. Gotham Asset Management LLC now owns 116,589 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $55,630,000 after buying an additional 18,676 shares during the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 70.98% of the company’s stock.

Caterpillar Trading Up 1.5%

NYSE:CAT opened at $910.78 on Friday. The stock’s 50 day simple moving average is $851.85 and its 200-day simple moving average is $726.64. Caterpillar Inc. has a 12-month low of $355.70 and a 12-month high of $946.83. The firm has a market cap of $419.50 billion, a P/E ratio of 45.34, a PEG ratio of 1.77 and a beta of 1.59. The company has a current ratio of 1.35, a quick ratio of 0.81 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.64.

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

Caterpillar Increases Dividend

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

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of equities research analysts have weighed in on the company. Truist Financial set a $1,043.00 price objective on Caterpillar in a research note on Friday, May 1st. Weiss Ratings reissued a “buy (b-)” rating on shares of Caterpillar in a report on Friday, May 8th. Bank of America boosted their target price on Caterpillar from $930.00 to $989.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Friday, May 1st. UBS Group reissued a “neutral” rating and issued a $900.00 target price on shares of Caterpillar in a report on Tuesday, June 2nd. Finally, Daiwa Securities Group boosted their target price on Caterpillar from $790.00 to $900.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a report on Friday, May 1st. One analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, sixteen have given a Buy rating and nine have issued a Hold rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $933.27.

Insider Activity

In related news, insider Jason Kaiser sold 5,642 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Monday, May 4th. The stock was sold at an average price of $883.03, for a total transaction of $4,982,055.26. Following the transaction, the insider owned 9,594 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $8,471,789.82. This represents a 37.03% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available at this link. Also, CFO Andrew R. J. Bonfield sold 15,674 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Wednesday, May 6th. The stock was sold at an average price of $918.71, for a total value of $14,399,860.54. Following the transaction, the chief financial officer directly owned 52,935 shares in the company, valued at $48,631,913.85. This represents a 22.85% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale is available in the SEC filing. Insiders have sold a total of 95,773 shares of company stock valued at $87,642,635 over the last three months. 0.33% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

Key Headlines Impacting Caterpillar

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.