Caterpillar (NYSE:CAT) Stock Price Down 2.6% – Here’s Why

Caterpillar Inc. (NYSE:CAT)’s share price traded down 2.6% during trading on Thursday . The stock traded as low as $948.78 and last traded at $965.4420. Approximately 3,425,830 shares were traded during mid-day trading, an increase of 18% from the average session volume of 2,902,456 shares. The stock had previously closed at $991.41.

Key Headlines Impacting Caterpillar

Here are the key news stories impacting Caterpillar this week:

• Positive Sentiment: Truist raised its price target on Caterpillar to $1,218 and kept a buy rating, suggesting meaningful upside from current levels. Article title unavailable
• Positive Sentiment: Zacks lifted its earnings estimates for Caterpillar’s Q2 2028 results and reiterated a strong-buy view, reflecting confidence in the company’s longer-term earnings power.
• Positive Sentiment: Caterpillar said it is investing in Texas manufacturing workforce development, a move that supports future production capacity and talent pipeline growth. Caterpillar Invests in the Future of Texas’ Manufacturing Workforce
• Neutral Sentiment: Analyst commentary continues to point to strong backlog, solid Q1 growth, and an upbeat 2026 outlook, which helps reinforce Caterpillar’s fundamental story.
• Negative Sentiment: Michael Burry disclosed his first-ever short position in Caterpillar, arguing the stock has become too expensive after a sharp AI-infrastructure-driven rally. Caterpillar Slides Nearly 7% After Burry Opens First Short
• Negative Sentiment: Several articles highlighted valuation concerns tied to Caterpillar’s rapid run to record highs, which may be pressuring shares as investors reassess how much optimism is already priced in.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

CAT has been the topic of several research analyst reports. Sanford C. Bernstein boosted their price objective on shares of Caterpillar from $769.00 to $879.00 and gave the company a “market perform” rating in a report on Friday, May 1st. Wall Street Zen raised shares of Caterpillar from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a research note on Saturday, May 2nd. Williams Trading set a $825.00 price target on shares of Caterpillar in a research note on Tuesday, March 10th. Evercore restated an “outperform” rating and issued a $1,103.00 price objective on shares of Caterpillar in a report on Monday, May 11th. Finally, Weiss Ratings reaffirmed a “buy (b-)” rating on shares of Caterpillar in a research report on Friday, May 8th. One analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, sixteen have issued a Buy rating and nine have assigned a Hold rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $949.41.

Caterpillar Stock Performance

The stock has a market capitalization of $444.67 billion, a PE ratio of 48.06, a P/E/G ratio of 2.10 and a beta of 1.57. 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 firm’s 50 day moving average is $911.90 and its two-hundred day moving average is $765.06.

Caterpillar (NYSE:CAT) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, April 30th. The industrial products company reported $5.54 EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $4.65 by $0.89. Caterpillar had a net margin of 13.33% and a return on equity of 48.21%. The business had revenue of $17.41 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $16.53 billion. During the same quarter in the previous year, the firm posted $4.25 earnings per share. The company’s quarterly revenue was up 22.2% compared to the same quarter last year. As a group, research analysts predict that Caterpillar Inc. will post 24.66 earnings per share for the current year.

Caterpillar Increases Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, August 19th. Investors of record on Monday, July 20th will be paid a dividend of $1.63 per share. This represents a $6.52 annualized dividend and a yield of 0.7%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, July 20th. This is a positive change from Caterpillar’s previous quarterly dividend of $1.51. Caterpillar’s payout ratio is presently 30.06%.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other Caterpillar news, CAO William E. Schaupp sold 360 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, May 13th. The stock was sold at an average price of $906.00, for a total value of $326,160.00. Following the sale, the chief accounting officer owned 530 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $480,180. This trade represents a 40.45% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this link. Also, insider Lange Bob De sold 24,222 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, May 6th. The stock was sold at an average price of $922.92, for a total transaction of $22,354,968.24. Following the sale, the insider owned 86,029 shares in the company, valued at $79,397,884.68. The trade was a 21.97% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale is available in the SEC filing. Insiders have sold 95,773 shares of company stock worth $87,642,635 over the last ninety days. Company insiders own 0.33% of the company’s stock.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Caterpillar

Institutional investors and hedge funds have recently modified their holdings of the company. Wellington Management Group LLP raised its stake in Caterpillar by 3,949.8% in the third 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 in the last quarter. Diamant Asset Management Inc. boosted its position in shares of Caterpillar by 68,427.2% during the 1st quarter. Diamant Asset Management Inc. now owns 3,140,603 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $2,224,992,000 after acquiring an additional 3,136,020 shares in the last quarter. Capital International Investors purchased a new position in shares of Caterpillar in the 4th quarter valued at about $1,225,317,000. Northwestern Mutual Wealth Management Co. raised its position in shares of 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 worth $861,947,000 after acquiring an additional 1,281,087 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Bank of America Corp DE lifted its stake in Caterpillar by 16.0% during the fourth quarter. Bank of America Corp DE now owns 6,738,802 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $3,860,457,000 after purchasing an additional 928,974 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 70.98% of the company’s stock.

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.