ProShare Advisors LLC Decreases Holdings in Caterpillar Inc. $CAT

Key Points

• ProShare Advisors LLC reduced its Caterpillar stake by 9.9% in the fourth quarter, selling 56,218 shares and leaving it with 511,860 shares valued at about $293.2 million.
• Caterpillar posted strong quarterly results, beating estimates with EPS of $5.54 on revenue of $17.42 billion, while revenue rose 22.2% year over year.
• Analysts remain broadly bullish on CAT: recent price targets were raised by several firms, and the stock carries a “Moderate Buy” consensus with an average target price of $923.14.

ProShare Advisors LLC cut its stake in shares of Caterpillar Inc. (NYSE:CAT - Free Report) by 9.9% in the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund owned 511,860 shares of the industrial products company's stock after selling 56,218 shares during the period. ProShare Advisors LLC owned about 0.11% of Caterpillar worth $293,229,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other hedge funds have also added to or reduced their stakes in CAT. Wellington Management Group LLP raised its stake in Caterpillar by 3,949.8% during the 3rd quarter. Wellington Management Group LLP now owns 5,228,058 shares of the industrial products company's stock valued at $2,494,568,000 after buying an additional 5,098,964 shares during the last quarter. Northwestern Mutual Wealth Management Co. raised its stake in Caterpillar by 573.1% during the 4th quarter. Northwestern Mutual Wealth Management Co. now owns 1,504,612 shares of the industrial products company's stock valued at $861,947,000 after buying an additional 1,281,087 shares during the last quarter. Bank of New York Mellon Corp increased its stake 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 purchasing an additional 609,023 shares in the last quarter. Amundi increased its stake 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 purchasing an additional 464,036 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Vanguard Group Inc. raised its holdings in 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 purchasing an additional 442,164 shares during the period. 70.98% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Caterpillar News Summary

Here are the key news stories impacting Caterpillar this week:

• Positive Sentiment: Analysts and market commentators continue to pitch Caterpillar as a top long-term stock, citing rising revenues, strong earnings growth, and an improving outlook for heavy equipment demand. Why Caterpillar (CAT) is a Top Stock for the Long-Term
• Positive Sentiment: Several pieces frame CAT as an emerging AI infrastructure beneficiary, pointing to engine solutions for data centers and gas compression, which could expand demand beyond traditional construction and mining end markets. Caterpillar Inc. (CAT) Discusses Capacity Expansion and Engine Solutions for Data Centers and Gas Compression Transcript
• Positive Sentiment: Investor optimism has intensified around CAT’s rerating, with some commentary suggesting the stock could keep climbing if backlog strength and AI-related demand remain intact. Price Prediction and Forecast: Can CAT Shares Hit $1000 By 2027?
• Positive Sentiment: Coverage comparing Caterpillar with Deere says CAT has the edge on revenue growth and earnings momentum, reinforcing a relatively constructive view on the stock despite tariff pressure. Caterpillar vs. Deere: Which Heavy Equipment Stock is the Better Buy?
• Neutral Sentiment: Caterpillar is drawing heavy investor attention on news feeds and search activity, which signals heightened interest but not a clear fundamental catalyst by itself. Caterpillar Inc. (CAT) is Attracting Investor Attention: Here is What You Should Know
• Neutral Sentiment: A local report on workforce and tariff issues at a Caterpillar-related facility underscores ongoing supply-chain and trade concerns, but it does not appear to be a major company-specific negative on its own. Hassan tours Milton CAT facility to discuss workforce, tariff issues
• Negative Sentiment: Some broader market coverage noted Caterpillar among the Dow components contributing to index losses, reflecting short-term selling pressure rather than a change in CAT’s fundamentals. Caterpillar, NVIDIA Corp. share losses lead Dow's nearly 150-point drop

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, insider Anthony D. Fassino sold 16,283 shares of the company's stock in a transaction on Monday, May 11th. The shares were sold at an average price of $916.80, for a total value of $14,928,254.40. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider owned 46,041 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $42,210,388.80. This represents a 26.13% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this link. Also, insider Jason Kaiser sold 5,642 shares of the company's stock in a transaction on Monday, May 4th. The stock was sold at an average price of $883.03, for a total transaction of $4,982,055.26. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider directly owned 9,594 shares of the company's stock, valued at $8,471,789.82. This represents a 37.03% decrease in their position. Additional details regarding this sale are available in the official SEC disclosure. Insiders have sold a total of 100,551 shares of company stock worth $91,170,351 in the last three months. Corporate insiders own 0.33% of the company's stock.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of brokerages recently commented on CAT. Robert W. Baird raised their target price on Caterpillar from $940.00 to $1,165.00 and gave the stock an "outperform" rating in a report on Friday, May 1st. JPMorgan Chase & Co. raised their target price on Caterpillar from $860.00 to $1,125.00 and gave the stock an "overweight" rating in a report on Friday, May 1st. DA Davidson raised their target price on Caterpillar from $650.00 to $845.00 and gave the stock a "neutral" rating in a report on Monday, May 4th. Truist Financial set a $1,043.00 target price on Caterpillar in a report on Friday, May 1st. Finally, Daiwa Securities Group raised their target price on Caterpillar from $790.00 to $900.00 and gave the stock a "neutral" rating in a report on Friday, May 1st. Sixteen equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and nine have given a Hold rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average price target of $923.14.

Caterpillar Trading Down 2.9%

Shares of Caterpillar stock opened at $862.49 on Tuesday. The company has a market capitalization of $397.26 billion, a P/E ratio of 42.93, a P/E/G ratio of 1.77 and a beta of 1.63. 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 company has a fifty day moving average of $778.33 and a 200 day moving average of $683.50. Caterpillar Inc. has a fifty-two week low of $336.24 and a fifty-two week high of $931.35.

Caterpillar (NYSE:CAT - Get Free Report) last issued its earnings results on Thursday, April 30th. The industrial products company reported $5.54 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $4.65 by $0.89. The company had revenue of $17.42 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $16.53 billion. Caterpillar had a net margin of 13.33% and a return on equity of 48.21%. Caterpillar's quarterly revenue was up 22.2% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm posted $4.25 EPS. On average, sell-side analysts anticipate that Caterpillar Inc. will post 24.48 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Caterpillar Announces Dividend

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 issued a $1.51 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, April 20th. This represents a $6.04 annualized dividend and a yield of 0.7%. Caterpillar's dividend payout ratio is currently 30.06%.

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.

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