State of Wisconsin Investment Board Cuts Stake in Caterpillar Inc. $CAT

State of Wisconsin Investment Board reduced its position in Caterpillar Inc. (NYSE:CAT) by 2.5% during the 4th quarter, Holdings Channel.com reports. The firm owned 245,658 shares of the industrial products company’s stock after selling 6,388 shares during the period. State of Wisconsin Investment Board’s holdings in Caterpillar were worth $140,730,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds have also made changes to their positions in the stock. Captrust Financial Advisors lifted its stake in shares of Caterpillar by 5.6% during the fourth quarter. Captrust Financial Advisors now owns 141,582 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $81,108,000 after buying an additional 7,494 shares during the period. &PARTNERS lifted its stake in shares of Caterpillar by 19.9% during the fourth quarter. &PARTNERS now owns 99,386 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $56,952,000 after buying an additional 16,494 shares during the period. ExodusPoint Capital Management LP lifted its stake in shares of Caterpillar by 51.0% during the fourth quarter. ExodusPoint Capital Management LP now owns 25,460 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $14,585,000 after buying an additional 8,599 shares during the period. Titan Wealth CI Ltd acquired a new stake in shares of Caterpillar during the fourth quarter worth $6,387,000. Finally, Blair William & Co. IL lifted its stake in shares of Caterpillar by 0.6% during the fourth quarter. Blair William & Co. IL now owns 116,252 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $66,597,000 after buying an additional 636 shares during the period. 70.98% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several equities research analysts have recently commented on the stock. Jefferies Financial Group lifted their price objective on shares of Caterpillar from $900.00 to $1,045.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Friday, May 1st. JPMorgan Chase & Co. lifted their price objective on shares of Caterpillar from $860.00 to $1,125.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research note on Friday, May 1st. Truist Financial set a $1,043.00 price objective on shares of Caterpillar in a research note on Friday, May 1st. Argus lifted their price objective on shares of Caterpillar from $820.00 to $990.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Tuesday, May 5th. Finally, Wolfe Research boosted their target price on shares of Caterpillar from $670.00 to $750.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research report on Tuesday, March 31st. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, sixteen have issued a Buy rating and nine have given a Hold rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat, Caterpillar currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $933.27.

Key Caterpillar News

Here are the key news stories impacting Caterpillar this week:

• Positive Sentiment: Analysts say Caterpillar stands out versus Komatsu thanks to stronger earnings momentum, rising growth targets, and better profitability, despite tariff pressure. Caterpillar vs. Komatsu: Which Heavy Equipment Stock is the Better Buy?
• Positive Sentiment: Coverage points to Caterpillar as a major driver of the Dow’s gains, reflecting strong investor demand for the stock. Dow rallies 488 points on gains in shares of JPMorgan Chase, Caterpillar
• Positive Sentiment: Recent commentary says CAT has surged on solid quarterly results, strong backlog, AI-driven power generation demand, and aggressive buybacks, supporting the bullish case. 2 Reasons to Watch CAT and 1 to Stay Cautious
• Positive Sentiment: Caterpillar’s dividend increase was highlighted as sustainable, reinforcing confidence in cash flow and shareholder returns. 3 Dividend Increases Investors Can Actually Trust
• Neutral Sentiment: Several articles argued that CAT remains a world-class industrial company and a long-term growth story, but these are mainly valuation and strategy discussions rather than new catalysts. Caterpillar: A World-Class Industrial At A World-Class Price Tag
• Neutral Sentiment: Commentary on CAT’s huge year-to-date move and how much upside remains is more about investor debate than a direct fundamental update. Up 300% YTD, How High Can CAT Stock Rally This Year?

Caterpillar Trading Up 1.4%

NYSE CAT opened at $946.71 on Wednesday. The company has a market capitalization of $436.05 billion, a PE ratio of 47.12, a P/E/G ratio of 1.85 and a beta of 1.59. The company has a fifty day moving average of $860.76 and a 200 day moving average of $733.04. Caterpillar Inc. has a 1 year low of $356.96 and a 1 year high of $961.33. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.64, a current ratio of 1.35 and a quick ratio of 0.81.

Caterpillar (NYSE:CAT) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, April 30th. The industrial products company reported $5.54 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $4.65 by $0.89. The business 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%. The company’s 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 earnings per share. Research analysts forecast that Caterpillar Inc. will post 24.62 earnings per share for the current year.

Caterpillar Increases Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, August 19th. Shareholders of record on Monday, July 20th will be given a $1.63 dividend. This represents a $6.52 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 0.7%. This is an increase from Caterpillar’s previous quarterly dividend of $1.51. The ex-dividend date is Monday, July 20th. Caterpillar’s payout ratio is currently 30.06%.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other Caterpillar news, CFO Andrew R. J. Bonfield sold 15,674 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, May 6th. The shares were sold at an average price of $918.71, for a total value of $14,399,860.54. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief financial officer owned 52,935 shares in the company, valued at approximately $48,631,913.85. This represents a 22.85% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a legal 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 dated 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 owned 9,594 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $8,471,789.82. This trade represents a 37.03% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale is available in the SEC filing. In the last 90 days, insiders have sold 95,773 shares of company stock valued at $87,642,635. 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.