Caterpillar Inc. $CAT Shares Sold by Vantage Investment Partners LLC

Key Points

• Vantage Investment Partners LLC cut its Caterpillar stake by 10.6% in the fourth quarter, selling 3,900 shares and ending with 33,063 shares valued at about $18.9 million.
• Caterpillar continues to attract strong institutional interest, with major holders like Vanguard, Wellington, and others increasing positions; institutional investors now own 70.98% of the stock.
• The company’s recent earnings and outlook remain solid: Q1 EPS and revenue beat estimates, analysts maintain a Moderate Buy rating, and commentary around the Power & Energy segment points to potential growth from AI data center and infrastructure demand.

Vantage Investment Partners LLC lowered its position in Caterpillar Inc. (NYSE:CAT - Free Report) by 10.6% during the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm owned 33,063 shares of the industrial products company's stock after selling 3,900 shares during the period. Caterpillar makes up about 1.3% of Vantage Investment Partners LLC's investment portfolio, making the stock its 23rd biggest position. Vantage Investment Partners LLC's holdings in Caterpillar were worth $18,941,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other institutional investors and hedge funds have also modified their holdings of the company. Vanguard Group Inc. grew its holdings in shares of Caterpillar by 1.0% in the 4th quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 46,385,185 shares of the industrial products company's stock worth $26,572,681,000 after acquiring an additional 442,164 shares during the period. Wellington Management Group LLP grew its holdings in shares of Caterpillar by 3,949.8% in the 3rd quarter. Wellington Management Group LLP now owns 5,228,058 shares of the industrial products company's stock worth $2,494,568,000 after acquiring an additional 5,098,964 shares during the period. Bank of New York Mellon Corp grew its holdings in shares of Caterpillar by 20.7% in 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 acquiring an additional 609,023 shares during the period. Legal & General Group Plc grew its holdings in shares of Caterpillar by 2.2% in the 3rd quarter. Legal & General Group Plc now owns 2,802,068 shares of the industrial products company's stock worth $1,337,007,000 after acquiring an additional 58,993 shares during the period. Finally, Amundi grew its holdings in shares of Caterpillar by 24.3% in the 3rd quarter. Amundi now owns 2,375,710 shares of the industrial products company's stock worth $1,176,870,000 after acquiring an additional 464,036 shares during the period. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 70.98% of the company's stock.

Insider Buying and Selling at Caterpillar

In other news, insider Denise C. Johnson sold 12,605 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction on Thursday, May 14th. The stock was sold at an average price of $907.91, for a total transaction of $11,444,205.55. Following the sale, the insider owned 49,825 shares in the company, valued at $45,236,615.75. This trade represents a 20.19% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this link. Also, CFO Andrew R. J. Bonfield sold 15,674 shares of the firm'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 sale, the chief financial officer owned 52,935 shares in the company, valued at $48,631,913.85. This trade represents a 22.85% decrease in their position. Additional details regarding this sale are available in the official SEC disclosure. Over the last ninety days, insiders have sold 100,551 shares of company stock valued at $91,170,351. 0.33% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

Key Headlines Impacting Caterpillar

Here are the key news stories impacting Caterpillar this week:

• Positive Sentiment: Caterpillar’s Power & Energy business is being highlighted as a major growth opportunity, with rising backlog, capacity expansion, and demand from AI data centers supporting the company’s longer-term targets. Article Title
• Positive Sentiment: Separate coverage is reinforcing Caterpillar as a “power infrastructure play,” helped by a strategic framework agreement tied to up to 2.1 gigawatts of incremental power-generation assets, which suggests additional demand beyond its core construction and mining equipment businesses. Article Title
• Positive Sentiment: Caterpillar was also mentioned among the stocks helping drive a strong Dow rally, indicating broader investor demand for the name during today’s market advance. Article Title
• Neutral Sentiment: Caterpillar was included in a hedge-fund stock screen, which may reflect institutional interest, but the item did not add a clear new catalyst by itself. Article Title

Caterpillar Price Performance

Shares of NYSE:CAT opened at $880.23 on Friday. Caterpillar Inc. has a one year low of $336.24 and a one year high of $931.35. The business's fifty day moving average price is $791.73 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $690.84. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.64, a quick ratio of 0.81 and a current ratio of 1.35. The stock has a market cap of $405.42 billion, a PE ratio of 43.81, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.71 and a beta of 1.63.

Caterpillar (NYSE:CAT - Get Free Report) 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. Caterpillar had a return on equity of 48.21% and a net margin of 13.33%.The business had revenue of $17.42 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $16.53 billion. During the same quarter last year, the firm earned $4.25 earnings per share. The business's revenue was up 22.2% on a year-over-year basis. On average, analysts forecast that Caterpillar Inc. will post 24.67 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Caterpillar Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, May 19th. Stockholders of record on Monday, April 20th were issued a dividend of $1.51 per share. The ex-dividend date was Monday, April 20th. This represents a $6.04 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 0.7%. Caterpillar's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 30.06%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of brokerages have commented on CAT. Bank of America increased 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. Truist Financial set a $1,043.00 target price on Caterpillar in a report on Friday, May 1st. CICC Research began coverage on Caterpillar in a report on Friday, February 6th. They set an "outperform" rating on the stock. Williams Trading set a $825.00 target price on Caterpillar in a report on Tuesday, March 10th. Finally, Citigroup increased their target price on Caterpillar from $905.00 to $1,020.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a report on Friday, May 1st. Sixteen analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and nine have assigned a Hold rating to the company's stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock presently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average target price of $923.14.

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.

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