Financial Plan Inc. Buys Shares of 5,511 Caterpillar Inc. $CAT

Key Points

• Financial Plan Inc. bought a new stake of 5,511 shares of Caterpillar in Q4, valued at about $3.16 million, and institutional investors now own roughly 70.98% of the stock.
• Insider selling has been heavy recently: insiders sold a total of 125,950 shares worth $88.58 million in the last three months, including Lange Bob De (22,656 shares, ~$16.3M) and CEO Joseph E. Creed (2,500 shares, ~$1.8M), reducing their holdings.
• Analyst sentiment and strategic moves have improved outlooks—multiple price-target upgrades (e.g., Wells Fargo $960, Truist $920) left a MarketBeat consensus of "Moderate Buy" with an average target of $761.64—while CAT trades at a high PE (~42.6) despite recent beat-and-raise earnings and revenue growth.

Financial Plan Inc. bought a new stake in shares of Caterpillar Inc. (NYSE:CAT - Free Report) during the 4th quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm bought 5,511 shares of the industrial products company's stock, valued at approximately $3,157,000.

Other hedge funds and other institutional investors also recently made changes to their positions in the company. IFS Advisors LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Caterpillar in the fourth quarter valued at about $31,000. Rialto Wealth Management LLC grew its position in Caterpillar by 47.4% during the fourth quarter. Rialto Wealth Management LLC now owns 56 shares of the industrial products company's stock worth $32,000 after buying an additional 18 shares in the last quarter. Marquette Asset Management LLC lifted its stake in Caterpillar by 1,060.0% during the third quarter. Marquette Asset Management LLC now owns 58 shares of the industrial products company's stock worth $28,000 after purchasing an additional 53 shares during the period. Noble Wealth Management PBC lifted its stake in Caterpillar by 140.0% during the fourth quarter. Noble Wealth Management PBC now owns 60 shares of the industrial products company's stock worth $34,000 after purchasing an additional 35 shares during the period. Finally, Key Capital Management INC bought a new position in Caterpillar during the fourth quarter worth about $36,000. 70.98% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In related news, insider Lange Bob De sold 22,656 shares of the firm's 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 completion of the sale, the insider directly owned 79,953 shares in the company, valued at approximately $57,574,954.83. This trade represents a 22.08% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is accessible through the SEC website. Also, CEO Joseph E. Creed sold 2,500 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction dated Thursday, March 5th. The shares were sold at an average price of $718.93, for a total transaction of $1,797,325.00. Following the completion of the sale, the chief executive officer owned 35,083 shares of the company's stock, valued at $25,222,221.19. This trade represents a 6.65% decrease in their ownership of the stock. Additional details regarding this sale are available in the official SEC disclosure. Insiders sold a total of 125,950 shares of company stock worth $88,577,390 in the last three months. Insiders own 0.33% of the company's stock.

Caterpillar News Roundup

Here are the key news stories impacting Caterpillar this week:

• Positive Sentiment: Analyst price-target upgrades lift sentiment — Wells Fargo raised its CAT target to $960 (citing AI/data-center demand) and Truist boosted its target to $920, keeping buy ratings; these lifts support higher investor expectations. Caterpillar Stock Can Gain 20%, Analyst Says Truist Raises Price Target
• Positive Sentiment: Acquisition of a California self-driving tractor startup signals a push into autonomy and recurring software/services revenue — a strategic move toward higher-margin, subscription-style income. Caterpillar acquires Californian self-driving tractor startup
• Positive Sentiment: Partnership with Geotab expands fleet telematics capabilities, improving data visibility and aftermarket/service revenue potential across customers’ mixed fleets. This supports Caterpillar’s shift to software-enabled services. Caterpillar Partners with Geotab on Full Fleet Telematics
• Positive Sentiment: Energy and data-center relevance — coverage highlights Caterpillar’s role supplying backup power and energy solutions for data centers, reinforcing a secular growth channel beyond traditional construction cycles. How Caterpillar is tapping into a 101-year-old toolbox to address future energy needs
• Positive Sentiment: Positive equity coverage and momentum – Zacks and IBD spotlight CAT as a stock to watch amid earnings strength and price momentum, reinforcing buying interest from momentum and growth investors. Earnings Growth & Price Strength Make Caterpillar a Stock to Watch
• Neutral Sentiment: Unrelated ticker note — CAT Strategic Metals (ticker CAT on other exchanges) announced a financing; this is a different, much smaller company and unlikely to affect Caterpillar Inc.’s shares. CAT Strategic Announces First Tranche Closing
• Negative Sentiment: Valuation and cyclicality remain risks — CAT trades at a rich multiple (PE ~42) and has above-market beta; heavy exposure to global capital spending means growth expectations are priced in and could magnify downside if macro or commodity cycles slow.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

CAT has been the subject of a number of research analyst reports. Williams Trading set a $825.00 target price on shares of Caterpillar in a research note on Tuesday, March 10th. UBS Group restated a "neutral" rating and issued a $677.00 price objective on shares of Caterpillar in a research report on Monday, February 2nd. Sanford C. Bernstein lifted their target price on shares of Caterpillar from $678.00 to $769.00 and gave the stock a "market perform" rating in a report on Thursday, April 9th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. lifted their target price on shares of Caterpillar from $765.00 to $860.00 and gave the stock an "overweight" rating in a report on Wednesday, March 4th. Finally, Citigroup boosted their price target on shares of Caterpillar from $785.00 to $905.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a report on Monday, April 13th. Sixteen investment 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. According to data from MarketBeat, Caterpillar presently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average target price of $761.64.

Caterpillar Trading Up 0.3%

Shares of NYSE:CAT opened at $800.99 on Wednesday. The company's 50-day moving average price is $737.55 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $640.69. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.44, a current ratio of 1.44 and a quick ratio of 0.94. Caterpillar Inc. has a one year low of $287.00 and a one year high of $820.20. The stock has a market capitalization of $372.69 billion, a PE ratio of 42.56, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.87 and a beta of 1.52.

Caterpillar (NYSE:CAT - Get Free Report) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, January 29th. The industrial products company reported $5.16 EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $4.67 by $0.49. The firm had revenue of $19.13 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $17.81 billion. Caterpillar had a net margin of 13.14% and a return on equity of 45.76%. The company's revenue for the quarter was up 17.9% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the previous year, the firm posted $5.14 EPS. On average, equities analysts forecast that Caterpillar Inc. will post 22.85 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Caterpillar Dividend Announcement

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, May 19th. Investors of record on Monday, April 20th will be paid a $1.51 dividend. This represents a $6.04 annualized dividend and a yield of 0.8%. The ex-dividend date is Monday, April 20th. Caterpillar's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 32.09%.

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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