BDF Gestion Acquires Shares of 5,571 Caterpillar Inc. $CAT

Key Points

• BDF Gestion established a new position in Caterpillar by acquiring 5,571 shares in the fourth quarter, valued at about $3.19 million.
• Caterpillar beat expectations for the quarter with EPS of $5.16 vs. $4.67 consensus and revenue of $19.13 billion (up 17.9% YoY); Wall Street’s consensus rating is a "Moderate Buy" with an average price target of $730.50 and several analysts raising targets (up to $825).
• Significant insider selling occurred last quarter—insiders sold 135,950 shares worth roughly $94.3 million, leaving insiders with 0.33% ownership of the company.

BDF Gestion acquired a new position in Caterpillar Inc. (NYSE:CAT - Free Report) during the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor acquired 5,571 shares of the industrial products company's stock, valued at approximately $3,191,000.

Several other institutional investors have also recently made changes to their positions in CAT. IFS Advisors LLC purchased a new stake in Caterpillar in the fourth quarter valued at $31,000. Marquette Asset Management LLC raised its stake in shares of Caterpillar by 1,060.0% during the 3rd quarter. Marquette Asset Management LLC now owns 58 shares of the industrial products company's stock valued at $28,000 after buying an additional 53 shares during the last quarter. Noble Wealth Management PBC lifted its holdings in shares of Caterpillar by 140.0% in the 4th quarter. Noble Wealth Management PBC now owns 60 shares of the industrial products company's stock valued at $34,000 after buying an additional 35 shares during the period. Joseph Group Capital Management acquired a new position in shares of Caterpillar in the 3rd quarter valued at about $32,000. Finally, Kilter Group LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Caterpillar in the second quarter worth about $27,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 70.98% of the company's stock.

Caterpillar Stock Up 3.0%

Caterpillar stock opened at $701.38 on Tuesday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.44, a current ratio of 1.44 and a quick ratio of 0.94. The stock has a market capitalization of $326.34 billion, a PE ratio of 37.27, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.61 and a beta of 1.53. The business has a 50 day simple moving average of $703.39 and a 200-day simple moving average of $597.63. Caterpillar Inc. has a 12 month low of $267.30 and a 12 month high of $789.81.

Caterpillar (NYSE:CAT - Get Free Report) last announced its earnings results on Thursday, January 29th. The industrial products company reported $5.16 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts' consensus estimates of $4.67 by $0.49. The firm had revenue of $19.13 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $17.81 billion. Caterpillar had a return on equity of 45.76% and a net margin of 13.14%.The business's revenue was up 17.9% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter last year, the firm posted $5.14 EPS. On average, analysts anticipate that Caterpillar Inc. will post 19.86 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Caterpillar News Summary

Here are the key news stories impacting Caterpillar this week:

• Positive Sentiment: Zacks raised its earnings outlook for Caterpillar, forecasting higher EPS — a direct positive for investor expectations and support for the stock after Caterpillar’s January quarter beat. Zacks Research Forecasts Higher Earnings for Caterpillar
• Positive Sentiment: A Chicago Tribune editorial highlights Hyundai Translead’s large Joliet manufacturing investment and broader regional manufacturing momentum; such industrial investments can indirectly lift demand for heavy equipment, parts and services that benefit suppliers like CAT. Editorial: Gov. JB Pritzker gets a big win with Hyundai Translead’s splashy Joliet investment
• Neutral Sentiment: Human-interest coverage referencing “caterpillars” as food for songbirds — not related to Caterpillar Inc.’s business; minimal investor impact. ‘The great munching’: Caterpillars’ gluttony means food for baby songbirds
• Neutral Sentiment: Feature on interactive machines at an Illinois museum — raises local brand visibility but has little bearing on fundamentals. The Massive Interactive Machines At This Illinois Museum Will Blow You Away
• Negative Sentiment: A Seeking Alpha piece warns that while data‑center demand tailwinds for Caterpillar are real, current valuation appears to price in aggressive growth that may be unrealistic — a caution for multiple expansion and a potential cap on further upside if growth slows. Caterpillar: Data Center Tailwinds Are Real, But Valuation Assumes Unrealistic Growth

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several brokerages recently weighed in on CAT. Jefferies Financial Group lifted their price target on Caterpillar from $785.00 to $825.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a research report on Friday, March 6th. DA Davidson raised 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. Wall Street Zen lowered shares of Caterpillar from a "buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a report on Saturday, February 21st. Williams Trading set a $825.00 target price on shares of Caterpillar in a research note on Tuesday, March 10th. Finally, CICC Research started coverage on shares of Caterpillar in a research report on Friday, February 6th. They set an "outperform" rating on the stock. Sixteen analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, seven have assigned a Hold rating and one has assigned a Sell rating to the company's stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company currently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus price target of $730.50.

Insider Buying and Selling at Caterpillar

In other news, insider Lange Bob De sold 22,656 shares of Caterpillar stock in a transaction dated Friday, February 6th. The shares were sold at an average price of $720.11, for a total value of $16,314,812.16. Following the sale, the insider owned 79,953 shares in the company, valued at $57,574,954.83. This trade represents a 22.08% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this link. Also, insider Denise C. Johnson sold 39,138 shares of the business's stock in a transaction dated Monday, February 2nd. The stock was sold at an average price of $681.08, for a total transaction of $26,656,109.04. Following the sale, the insider directly owned 43,350 shares of the company's stock, valued at $29,524,818. This represents a 47.45% decrease in their position. Additional details regarding this sale are available in the official SEC disclosure. Over the last quarter, insiders sold 135,950 shares of company stock valued at $94,327,990. Insiders own 0.33% of the company's stock.

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.

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