Caterpillar Inc. $CAT Stake Decreased by First Dallas Securities Inc.

First Dallas Securities Inc. lowered its stake in shares of Caterpillar Inc. (NYSE:CAT) by 10.7% in the 1st quarter, Holdings Channel.com reports. The institutional investor owned 8,652 shares of the industrial products company’s stock after selling 1,038 shares during the period. Caterpillar comprises approximately 2.3% of First Dallas Securities Inc.’s investment portfolio, making the stock its 9th biggest holding. First Dallas Securities Inc.’s holdings in Caterpillar were worth $6,130,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the stock. Lam Group Inc. bought a new position in Caterpillar during the first quarter valued at $26,000. Torren Management LLC bought a new stake in shares of Caterpillar in the fourth quarter valued at $27,000. Frazier Financial Advisors LLC lifted its position in shares of Caterpillar by 220.0% during the 4th quarter. Frazier Financial Advisors LLC now owns 48 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $28,000 after buying an additional 33 shares during the last quarter. IFS Advisors LLC purchased a new position in shares of Caterpillar during the 4th quarter valued at $31,000. Finally, Rialto Wealth Management LLC grew its stake in shares of Caterpillar by 47.4% during the 4th quarter. Rialto Wealth Management LLC now owns 56 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $32,000 after acquiring an additional 18 shares during the period. 70.98% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other Caterpillar news, CAO William E. Schaupp sold 360 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, May 13th. The stock was sold at an average price of $906.00, for a total value of $326,160.00. Following the sale, the chief accounting officer owned 530 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $480,180. This trade represents a 40.45% decrease in their position. The transaction 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 Caterpillar stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, May 6th. The shares were sold at an average price of $918.71, for a total value of $14,399,860.54. Following the sale, the chief financial officer 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 position. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. Insiders have sold a total of 95,773 shares of company stock valued at $87,642,635 in the last ninety days. 0.33% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of brokerages recently issued reports on CAT. Sanford C. Bernstein boosted their price objective on Caterpillar from $769.00 to $879.00 and gave the company a “market perform” rating in a research note on Friday, May 1st. Zacks Research upgraded shares of Caterpillar from a “hold” rating to a “strong-buy” rating in a research note on Monday, June 8th. Robert W. Baird boosted their price target on shares of Caterpillar from $1,165.00 to $1,200.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research report on Friday, June 26th. Wolfe Research upped their price target on shares of Caterpillar from $670.00 to $750.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research note on Tuesday, March 31st. Finally, Rothschild & Co Redburn lifted their price objective on shares of Caterpillar from $700.00 to $950.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research note on Thursday, May 14th. One analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, sixteen have issued a Buy rating and nine have given a Hold rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, Caterpillar has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $949.41.

Caterpillar Trading Up 0.2%

Shares of Caterpillar stock opened at $965.44 on Friday. The company’s 50-day moving average price is $918.32 and its 200-day moving average price is $769.03. 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 Inc. has a 12-month low of $388.09 and a 12-month high of $1,073.46. The company has a market cap of $444.67 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 48.06, a PEG ratio of 1.90 and a beta of 1.57.

Caterpillar (NYSE:CAT) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, April 30th. The industrial products company reported $5.54 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate 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 $17.41 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $16.53 billion. During the same quarter in the previous year, the company earned $4.25 earnings per share. Caterpillar’s revenue for the quarter was up 22.2% on a year-over-year basis. On average, equities analysts expect that Caterpillar Inc. will post 24.71 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Caterpillar Increases Dividend

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

Key Headlines Impacting Caterpillar

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 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.