Caterpillar Inc. $CAT Stake Boosted by Mediolanum International Funds Ltd

Mediolanum International Funds Ltd boosted its stake in shares of Caterpillar Inc. (NYSE:CAT) by 13.6% during the 1st quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm owned 113,532 shares of the industrial products company’s stock after buying an additional 13,549 shares during the period. Caterpillar comprises 0.8% of Mediolanum International Funds Ltd’s investment portfolio, making the stock its 22nd largest holding. Mediolanum International Funds Ltd’s holdings in Caterpillar were worth $75,775,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission.

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors also recently made changes to their positions in the company. Spartan Wealth Advisory Services LLC purchased a new position in shares of Caterpillar in the first quarter worth approximately $8,026,000. Palladiem LLC lifted its position in shares of Caterpillar by 6,500.0% in the 1st quarter. Palladiem LLC now owns 132 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $104,000 after acquiring an additional 130 shares in the last quarter. WealthTrust Asset Management LLC acquired a new position in Caterpillar in the 1st quarter worth approximately $223,000. Crescent Grove Advisors LLC acquired a new stake in Caterpillar during the 1st quarter valued at $269,000. Finally, Ascent Wealth Partners LLC lifted its holdings in shares of Caterpillar by 2.7% in the first quarter. Ascent Wealth Partners LLC now owns 15,931 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $11,287,000 after purchasing an additional 412 shares in the last quarter. 70.98% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Key Stories Impacting Caterpillar

Here are the key news stories impacting Caterpillar this week:

• Positive Sentiment: Multiple analyst updates turned incrementally more optimistic on Caterpillar’s earnings outlook, with Erste Group Bank and Zacks Research lifting FY2026, FY2027, FY2028 and several quarterly EPS estimates. Higher profit expectations can support the stock by reinforcing the view that CAT’s long-term demand and pricing power remain solid.
• Positive Sentiment: Several commentary pieces highlighted Caterpillar as a leading industrial and equipment name versus peers like Volvo, citing stronger earnings momentum, rising estimates, and long-term growth tied to infrastructure, electrification, automation, and AI data-center buildout demand.
• Neutral Sentiment: Pre-earnings coverage noted Wall Street is expecting Caterpillar’s upcoming Q2 2026 report to show another double-digit profit increase, which keeps investor attention focused on whether results can justify the stock’s premium valuation.
• Neutral Sentiment: Several articles framed Caterpillar as a high-quality company with a strong brand and global dealer network, but also warned that the valuation looks rich. That limits near-term upside unless earnings growth continues to outpace expectations.
• Negative Sentiment: Caterpillar was also mentioned in broader market weakness and “AI selloff” coverage, and Zacks Research downgraded the stock from strong-buy to hold. That suggests some investors are becoming more cautious after the recent run-up.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other news, insider Anthony D. Fassino sold 16,283 shares of the business’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 sale, the insider directly owned 46,041 shares in the company, valued at approximately $42,210,388.80. The trade was a 26.13% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. Also, CFO Andrew R. J. Bonfield sold 15,674 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Wednesday, May 6th. The shares were sold at an average price of $918.71, for a total transaction of $14,399,860.54. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief financial officer owned 52,935 shares in the company, valued at $48,631,913.85. The trade was a 22.85% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale is available in the SEC filing. Insiders sold 95,773 shares of company stock worth $87,642,635 in the last three months. 0.33% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

CAT has been the topic of several recent analyst reports. Citigroup upped their price target on Caterpillar from $1,020.00 to $1,100.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Tuesday. Wolfe Research upped their target price on Caterpillar from $670.00 to $750.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a report on Tuesday, March 31st. Truist Financial raised their price target on shares of Caterpillar from $1,043.00 to $1,218.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Thursday, July 2nd. HSBC increased their target price on shares of Caterpillar from $850.00 to $1,100.00 in a research report on Tuesday, May 5th. Finally, UBS Group restated a “neutral” rating and set a $900.00 price target on shares of Caterpillar in a report on Tuesday, June 2nd. Fifteen investment analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and ten have assigned a Hold rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $980.57.

Caterpillar Price Performance

NYSE CAT opened at $881.26 on Friday. The company has a 50 day moving average price of $931.29 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $793.45. Caterpillar Inc. has a 12-month low of $405.46 and a 12-month high of $1,073.46. The stock has a market capitalization of $405.90 billion, a PE ratio of 43.87, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.72 and a beta of 1.57. The company has a quick ratio of 0.81, a current ratio of 1.35 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.64.

Caterpillar (NYSE:CAT) last released its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, April 30th. The industrial products company reported $5.54 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $4.65 by $0.89. The business had revenue of $17.41 billion for 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 revenue for the quarter was up 22.2% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter last year, the firm earned $4.25 EPS. As a group, equities analysts predict that Caterpillar Inc. will post 24.87 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Caterpillar Increases Dividend

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

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.