Caterpillar Inc. $CAT Shares Acquired by First Trust Advisors LP

Key Points

• First Trust Advisors LP increased its stake by 19.3% to 334,495 shares (about $159.6M), and other large investors including Norges Bank and Massachusetts Financial Services also ramped up positions, leaving institutional ownership at 70.98%.
• Caterpillar beat earnings and revenue (EPS $5.16 vs. $4.67 expected; revenue $19.13B vs. $17.81B, +17.9% YoY), and analysts have raised price targets (Jefferies $825, Oppenheimer $817) helping push the consensus target to about $724.81, implying roughly ~20% upside.
• Insider activity shows notable selling: insiders have sold 135,950 shares valued at $94.33M in the past 90 days (examples include Anthony Fassino and the CAO), with corporate insiders owning just 0.33% of the stock.

First Trust Advisors LP lifted its holdings in shares of Caterpillar Inc. (NYSE:CAT - Free Report) by 19.3% in the third quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor owned 334,495 shares of the industrial products company's stock after purchasing an additional 54,048 shares during the period. First Trust Advisors LP owned about 0.07% of Caterpillar worth $159,604,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently bought and sold shares of CAT. Norges Bank acquired a new position in shares of Caterpillar in the second quarter worth $2,165,899,000. Massachusetts Financial Services Co. MA boosted its stake in shares of Caterpillar by 1,851.8% during the third quarter. Massachusetts Financial Services Co. MA now owns 1,830,414 shares of the industrial products company's stock valued at $873,382,000 after acquiring an additional 1,736,631 shares during the last quarter. Marshall Wace LLP boosted its stake in shares of Caterpillar by 425.2% during the second quarter. Marshall Wace LLP now owns 761,800 shares of the industrial products company's stock valued at $295,738,000 after acquiring an additional 616,739 shares during the last quarter. Bank of New York Mellon Corp increased its position in Caterpillar by 20.7% during the 3rd quarter. Bank of New York Mellon Corp now owns 3,553,930 shares of the industrial products company's stock worth $1,695,757,000 after purchasing an additional 609,023 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Voya Investment Management LLC raised its stake in Caterpillar by 36.9% in the 3rd quarter. Voya Investment Management LLC now owns 1,777,589 shares of the industrial products company's stock valued at $848,177,000 after purchasing an additional 478,972 shares during the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 70.98% of the company's stock.

Key Headlines Impacting Caterpillar

Here are the key news stories impacting Caterpillar this week:

• Positive Sentiment: Analyst price‑target upgrades from Jefferies and Oppenheimer lift longer‑term outlooks — Jefferies raised its target to $825 and Oppenheimer to $817, both keeping buy/outperform views, signaling near‑20% upside versus current levels. Jefferies Adjusts Price Target
• Positive Sentiment: Recent fundamentals remain supportive: Caterpillar beat revenue and EPS expectations in its last report (strong margins and revenue growth), which underpins analyst bullishness and medium‑term earnings expectations. Analyst Upgrade Coverage
• Neutral Sentiment: CEO Joseph Creed sold 2,500 shares (filed with the SEC), a small reduction in insider holdings that may be interpreted as routine liquidity rather than a signal of deteriorating fundamentals. SEC Filing
• Neutral Sentiment: Positive PR and brand buzz from a viral AI image and Caterpillar’s real pickup concept give the company free publicity and may support equipment‑brand equity, but have limited immediate revenue impact. Caterpillar Built a Yellow Pickup
• Negative Sentiment: Large intraday losses in CAT helped drive sharp Dow declines and reflect heavy profit‑taking and macro risk sentiment; that market stress is the main reason the stock is down today. Dow Falls Coverage
• Negative Sentiment: Critical commentary on valuation labels Caterpillar as a high‑quality but highly valued cyclical, which could amplify downside if macro or industrial demand weakens. Valuation Critique
• Negative Sentiment: Market coverage noting the stock’s day‑over‑day dip highlights short‑term momentum weakness and heavier intraday volume, contributing to negative price action. Why CAT Dipped

Insider Activity

In other news, insider Anthony D. Fassino sold 7,891 shares of the business's stock in a transaction dated Friday, February 13th. The stock was sold at an average price of $776.90, for a total transaction of $6,130,517.90. Following the completion of the sale, the insider owned 46,643 shares in the company, valued at approximately $36,236,946.70. The trade was a 14.47% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this link. Also, CAO William E. Schaupp sold 972 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, February 17th. The stock was sold at an average price of $764.20, for a total transaction of $742,802.40. Following the sale, the chief accounting officer directly owned 824 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $629,700.80. This trade represents a 54.12% decrease in their position. Additional details regarding this sale are available in the official SEC disclosure. Insiders have sold 135,950 shares of company stock valued at $94,327,990 in the last 90 days. 0.33% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Caterpillar Price Performance

Caterpillar stock opened at $681.31 on Friday. Caterpillar Inc. has a 1 year low of $267.30 and a 1 year high of $789.81. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.44, a quick ratio of 0.94 and a current ratio of 1.44. The firm has a 50 day moving average price of $681.47 and a 200 day moving average price of $575.30. The company has a market cap of $317.01 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 36.20, a PEG ratio of 1.61 and a beta of 1.54.

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

Caterpillar Announces Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, February 19th. Investors of record on Tuesday, January 20th were issued a $1.51 dividend. The ex-dividend date was Tuesday, January 20th. This represents a $6.04 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 0.9%. Caterpillar's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 32.09%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several research firms have issued reports on CAT. Evercore raised their price target on shares of Caterpillar from $476.00 to $630.00 and gave the stock an "outperform" rating in a research note on Monday, November 17th. Royal Bank Of Canada upped their price objective on shares of Caterpillar from $587.00 to $658.00 and gave the company a "sector perform" rating in a research note on Friday, January 30th. Jefferies Financial Group raised their target price on shares of Caterpillar from $785.00 to $825.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a research report on Friday. Rothschild & Co Redburn lifted their target price on shares of Caterpillar from $650.00 to $700.00 and gave the stock a "neutral" rating in a research note on Wednesday, February 4th. Finally, DA Davidson increased their price target on Caterpillar from $569.00 to $650.00 and gave the stock a "neutral" rating in a research note on Monday, February 2nd. Sixteen research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, seven have assigned a Hold rating and one has issued a Sell rating to the company's stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus price target of $724.81.

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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