Rep. Bruce Westerman Purchases Shares of Caterpillar Inc. (NYSE:CAT)

Representative Bruce Westerman (R-Arkansas) recently bought shares of Caterpillar Inc. (NYSE:CAT). In a filing disclosed on April 16th, the Representative disclosed that they had bought between $1,001 and $15,000 in Caterpillar stock on March 3rd. The trade occurred in the Representative’s “FISHER IRA” account.

Representative Bruce Westerman also recently made the following trade(s):

• Purchased $1,001 – $15,000 in shares of LVMH Moët Hennessy – Louis Vuitton, Société Européenne (OTCMKTS:LVMUY) on 4/2/2025.
• Purchased $1,001 – $15,000 in shares of Sony Group (NYSE:SONY) on 3/24/2025.
• Purchased $1,001 – $15,000 in shares of Mitsubishi UFJ Financial Group (NYSE:MUFG) on 3/21/2025.
• Purchased $1,001 – $15,000 in shares of BP (NYSE:BP) on 3/21/2025.
• Sold $1,001 – $15,000 in shares of Procter & Gamble (NYSE:PG) on 3/20/2025.
• Sold $1,001 – $15,000 in shares of Medtronic (NYSE:MDT) on 3/20/2025.
• Purchased $1,001 – $15,000 in shares of ASML (NASDAQ:ASML) on 3/20/2025.
• Sold $1,001 – $15,000 in shares of Visa (NYSE:V) on 3/20/2025.
• Sold $1,001 – $15,000 in shares of Microsoft (NASDAQ:MSFT) on 3/20/2025.
• Sold $1,001 – $15,000 in shares of Broadcom (NASDAQ:AVGO) on 3/20/2025.

Caterpillar Price Performance

CAT stock traded up $3.68 on Friday, reaching $293.82. The company had a trading volume of 2,716,340 shares, compared to its average volume of 2,639,101. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.40, a quick ratio of 0.89 and a current ratio of 1.42. Caterpillar Inc. has a 1 year low of $267.30 and a 1 year high of $418.50. The company’s fifty day moving average is $328.46 and its 200 day moving average is $364.66. The company has a market cap of $140.42 billion, a P/E ratio of 13.31, a PEG ratio of 1.87 and a beta of 1.21.

Caterpillar (NYSE:CAT) last announced its earnings results on Thursday, January 30th. The industrial products company reported $5.14 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $4.97 by $0.17. Caterpillar had a net margin of 16.65% and a return on equity of 58.18%. On average, research analysts forecast that Caterpillar Inc. will post 19.86 earnings per share for the current year.

Caterpillar Dividend Announcement

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, May 20th. Stockholders of record on Monday, April 21st will be given a dividend of $1.41 per share. The ex-dividend date is Monday, April 21st. This represents a $5.64 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.92%. Caterpillar’s payout ratio is 25.56%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of equities research analysts recently weighed in on CAT shares. Truist Financial lowered their price target on shares of Caterpillar from $438.00 to $389.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a report on Tuesday, April 8th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. dropped their price objective on Caterpillar from $490.00 to $380.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a report on Monday. UBS Group upgraded shares of Caterpillar from a “sell” rating to a “neutral” rating and lifted their price target for the stock from $355.00 to $385.00 in a research note on Monday, February 3rd. StockNews.com cut shares of Caterpillar from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Tuesday, February 25th. Finally, Bank of America decreased their target price on Caterpillar from $452.00 to $414.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a research report on Friday, January 31st. One research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, nine have assigned a hold rating and eight have assigned a buy rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, Caterpillar has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $361.64.

Insider Activity

In other Caterpillar news, Director Gerald Johnson purchased 100 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, February 4th. The stock was bought at an average cost of $365.57 per share, with a total value of $36,557.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the director now owns 3,053 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $1,116,085.21. The trade was a 3.39 % increase in their position. The purchase was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this link. Also, insider Jason Kaiser sold 2,425 shares of Caterpillar stock in a transaction on Tuesday, February 18th. The shares were sold at an average price of $354.70, for a total value of $860,147.50. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider now owns 6,275 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $2,225,742.50. This trade represents a 27.87 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. 0.29% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Several hedge funds have recently made changes to their positions in the business. Norges Bank bought a new position in Caterpillar in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $2,184,364,000. GAMMA Investing LLC lifted its stake in Caterpillar by 43,447.3% in the 1st quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC now owns 3,730,259 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $1,230,239,000 after purchasing an additional 3,721,693 shares during the last quarter. Capital Research Global Investors increased its holdings in shares of Caterpillar by 69.3% during the fourth quarter. Capital Research Global Investors now owns 2,924,054 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $1,060,730,000 after buying an additional 1,196,861 shares in the last quarter. Raymond James Financial Inc. acquired a new position in Caterpillar in the 4th quarter worth about $353,231,000. Finally, Proficio Capital Partners LLC boosted its stake in shares of Caterpillar by 50,072.7% during the fourth quarter. Proficio Capital Partners LLC now owns 804,770 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $291,938,000 after purchasing an additional 803,166 shares in the last quarter. 70.98% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

About Representative Westerman

Bruce Westerman (Republican Party) is a member of the U.S. House, representing Arkansas’ 4th Congressional District. He assumed office on January 3, 2015. His current term ends on January 3, 2027.

Westerman (Republican Party) is running for re-election to the U.S. House to represent Arkansas’ 4th Congressional District. He declared candidacy for the 2026 election.

Westerman earned his BSBAGE in biological and agricultural engineering from the University of Arkansas in 1990 and his MF in forestry from Yale University in 2001. His professional experience includes working as a plant engineer for Riceland Foods and an engineer/forester for Mid-South Engineering Company.

About Caterpillar

Caterpillar Inc manufactures and sells construction and mining equipment, off-highway diesel and natural gas engines, industrial gas turbines, and diesel-electric locomotives in worldwide. Its Construction Industries segment offers asphalt pavers, compactors, road reclaimers, forestry machines, cold planers, material handlers, track-type tractors, excavators, telehandlers, motor graders, and pipelayers; compact track, wheel, track-type, backhoe, and skid steer loaders; and related parts and tools.