Caterpillar Inc. $CAT Shares Bought by Ascentis Independent Advisors

Ascentis Independent Advisors increased its position in Caterpillar Inc. (NYSE:CAT) by 78.1% during the first quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm owned 8,054 shares of the industrial products company’s stock after acquiring an additional 3,531 shares during the period. Ascentis Independent Advisors’ holdings in Caterpillar were worth $5,706,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently bought and sold shares of the company. GM Advisory Group LLC grew its position in Caterpillar by 2.8% in the 1st quarter. GM Advisory Group LLC now owns 2,030 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $1,438,000 after purchasing an additional 55 shares during the last quarter. Astoria Portfolio Advisors LLC. lifted its holdings in Caterpillar by 2.3% in the first quarter. Astoria Portfolio Advisors LLC. now owns 1,839 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $1,303,000 after purchasing an additional 42 shares during the period. NBT Bank N A NY grew its position in Caterpillar by 29.5% in the 1st quarter. NBT Bank N A NY now owns 40,077 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $28,393,000 after buying an additional 9,124 shares in the last quarter. Howe & Rusling Inc. grew its position in Caterpillar by 0.4% in the 1st quarter. Howe & Rusling Inc. now owns 20,560 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $14,566,000 after buying an additional 72 shares in the last quarter. Finally, V Square Quantitative Management LLC raised its position in shares of Caterpillar by 1.9% during the 1st quarter. V Square Quantitative Management LLC now owns 8,606 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $6,097,000 after buying an additional 164 shares in the last quarter. 70.98% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several research analysts have recently issued reports on the stock. Bank of America increased their price objective on shares of Caterpillar from $930.00 to $989.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Friday, May 1st. Williams Trading set a $825.00 price target on Caterpillar in a research note on Tuesday, March 10th. Argus lifted their price target on Caterpillar from $820.00 to $990.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Tuesday, May 5th. HSBC lifted their price target on shares of Caterpillar from $850.00 to $1,100.00 in a research report on Tuesday, May 5th. Finally, Oppenheimer set a $980.00 price objective on Caterpillar and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research report on Friday, May 1st. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, sixteen have assigned a Buy rating and nine have issued a Hold rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $949.41.

Key Caterpillar News

Here are the key news stories impacting Caterpillar this week:

• Positive Sentiment: Truist raised its price target on Caterpillar to $1,218 from $1,043 and kept a buy rating, reinforcing bullish sentiment around the stock’s earnings and growth outlook. Article Link
• Positive Sentiment: Several reports highlighted Caterpillar as a momentum, long-term, and “trending” stock, suggesting investor interest remains strong and could help keep shares elevated. Article Link
• Positive Sentiment: Analysts and commentators pointed to Caterpillar’s role in powering data centers and other AI-related infrastructure, a theme that has helped explain the stock’s strong run. Article Link
• Positive Sentiment: Caterpillar also received fresh praise for strong backlog, earnings growth, and long-term expansion plans, which supports the case for continued upside. Article Link
• Neutral Sentiment: Caterpillar announced a $5 million investment in Texas workforce training and manufacturing education, a positive long-term initiative but not likely a major near-term stock driver. Article Link
• Neutral Sentiment: Wall Street analyst coverage remains broadly optimistic, with multiple articles noting favorable average brokerage recommendations, though these do not always translate into reliable signals. Article Link
• Negative Sentiment: Michael Burry disclosed a first-ever short position in Caterpillar, arguing the stock’s AI-linked rally may have stretched valuation too far; that news is likely the main source of pressure on shares today. Article Link

Caterpillar Stock Up 0.2%

Caterpillar stock opened at $965.44 on Monday. 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 fifty-two week low of $388.09 and a fifty-two week high of $1,073.46. The firm has a fifty day moving average price of $918.32 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $770.29. The firm has a market cap of $444.67 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 48.06, a P/E/G ratio of 1.90 and a beta of 1.57.

Caterpillar (NYSE:CAT) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, April 30th. The industrial products company reported $5.54 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $4.65 by $0.89. The company had revenue of $17.41 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $16.53 billion. Caterpillar had a net margin of 13.33% and a return on equity of 48.21%. The business’s revenue was up 22.2% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the previous year, the firm posted $4.25 EPS. As a group, analysts forecast that Caterpillar Inc. will post 24.71 earnings per share for the current year.

Caterpillar Increases Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, August 19th. Shareholders of record on Monday, July 20th will be given a $1.63 dividend. This represents a $6.52 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 0.7%. This is a positive change from Caterpillar’s previous quarterly dividend of $1.51. The ex-dividend date is Monday, July 20th. Caterpillar’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 30.06%.

Insider Activity

In other Caterpillar news, insider Anthony D. Fassino sold 16,283 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Monday, May 11th. The shares were sold at an average price of $916.80, for a total value of $14,928,254.40. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider directly owned 46,041 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $42,210,388.80. The trade was a 26.13% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Also, insider Jason Kaiser sold 5,642 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Monday, May 4th. The stock was sold at an average price of $883.03, for a total value of $4,982,055.26. Following the sale, the insider owned 9,594 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $8,471,789.82. The trade was a 37.03% decrease in their position. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. Over the last ninety days, insiders sold 95,773 shares of company stock valued at $87,642,635. 0.33% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

Caterpillar 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.