Ramirez Asset Management Inc. Grows Stock Holdings in Caterpillar Inc. $CAT

Ramirez Asset Management Inc. grew its position in Caterpillar Inc. (NYSE:CAT) by 11.4% in the third quarter, HoldingsChannel reports. The institutional investor owned 9,850 shares of the industrial products company’s stock after acquiring an additional 1,010 shares during the period. Ramirez Asset Management Inc.’s holdings in Caterpillar were worth $4,700,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other hedge funds have also recently bought and sold shares of the company. Norges Bank acquired a new position in Caterpillar in the 2nd quarter valued at about $2,165,899,000. Massachusetts Financial Services Co. MA increased its stake in Caterpillar by 1,851.8% during the third quarter. Massachusetts Financial Services Co. MA now owns 1,830,414 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $873,382,000 after purchasing an additional 1,736,631 shares during the period. Marshall Wace LLP lifted its position in shares of Caterpillar by 425.2% during the second quarter. Marshall Wace LLP now owns 761,800 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $295,738,000 after purchasing an additional 616,739 shares in the last quarter. Bank of New York Mellon Corp boosted its stake in shares of Caterpillar by 20.7% in the third quarter. Bank of New York Mellon Corp now owns 3,553,930 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $1,695,757,000 after purchasing an additional 609,023 shares during the period. Finally, Voya Investment Management LLC boosted its stake in shares of Caterpillar by 36.9% in the third quarter. Voya Investment Management LLC now owns 1,777,589 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $848,177,000 after purchasing an additional 478,972 shares during the period. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 70.98% of the company’s stock.

Caterpillar Stock Down 3.5%

Shares of Caterpillar stock opened at $681.31 on Friday. The company has a quick ratio of 0.94, a current ratio of 1.44 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.44. Caterpillar Inc. has a 52-week low of $267.30 and a 52-week high of $789.81. The company has a market capitalization of $317.01 billion, a P/E ratio of 36.20, a P/E/G ratio of 1.67 and a beta of 1.54. The company has a 50 day moving average of $681.47 and a 200 day moving average of $574.20.

Caterpillar (NYSE:CAT) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, January 29th. The industrial products company reported $5.16 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $4.67 by $0.49. The company had revenue of $19.13 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $17.81 billion. Caterpillar had a net margin of 13.14% and a return on equity of 45.76%. The company’s quarterly revenue was up 17.9% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the prior year, the firm posted $5.14 EPS. As a group, research analysts forecast that Caterpillar Inc. will post 19.86 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Caterpillar Announces Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, February 19th. Investors of record on Tuesday, January 20th were issued a $1.51 dividend. This represents a $6.04 annualized dividend and a yield of 0.9%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Tuesday, January 20th. Caterpillar’s dividend payout ratio is 32.09%.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other news, CEO Joseph E. Creed sold 2,500 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Thursday, March 5th. The stock was sold at an average price of $718.93, for a total value of $1,797,325.00. Following the transaction, the chief executive officer owned 35,083 shares in the company, valued at approximately $25,222,221.19. This represents a 6.65% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this link. Also, insider Anthony D. Fassino sold 7,891 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Friday, February 13th. The stock was sold at an average price of $776.90, for a total value of $6,130,517.90. Following the sale, the insider directly owned 46,643 shares in the company, valued at $36,236,946.70. This trade represents a 14.47% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale is available in the SEC filing. Insiders sold 135,950 shares of company stock valued at $94,327,990 over the last 90 days. 0.33% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

Key Headlines Impacting Caterpillar

Here are the key news stories impacting Caterpillar this week:

• Positive Sentiment: Analyst price‑target upgrades from Jefferies and Oppenheimer lift longer‑term outlooks — Jefferies raised its target to $825 and Oppenheimer to $817, both keeping buy/outperform views, signaling near‑20% upside versus current levels. Jefferies Adjusts Price Target
• Positive Sentiment: Recent fundamentals remain supportive: Caterpillar beat revenue and EPS expectations in its last report (strong margins and revenue growth), which underpins analyst bullishness and medium‑term earnings expectations. Analyst Upgrade Coverage
• Neutral Sentiment: CEO Joseph Creed sold 2,500 shares (filed with the SEC), a small reduction in insider holdings that may be interpreted as routine liquidity rather than a signal of deteriorating fundamentals. SEC Filing
• Neutral Sentiment: Positive PR and brand buzz from a viral AI image and Caterpillar’s real pickup concept give the company free publicity and may support equipment‑brand equity, but have limited immediate revenue impact. Caterpillar Built a Yellow Pickup
• Negative Sentiment: Large intraday losses in CAT helped drive sharp Dow declines and reflect heavy profit‑taking and macro risk sentiment; that market stress is the main reason the stock is down today. Dow Falls Coverage
• Negative Sentiment: Critical commentary on valuation labels Caterpillar as a high‑quality but highly valued cyclical, which could amplify downside if macro or industrial demand weakens. Valuation Critique
• Negative Sentiment: Market coverage noting the stock’s day‑over‑day dip highlights short‑term momentum weakness and heavier intraday volume, contributing to negative price action. Why CAT Dipped

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several equities research analysts recently weighed in on the stock. DA Davidson upped their target price on shares of Caterpillar from $569.00 to $650.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research note on Monday, February 2nd. Rothschild & Co Redburn raised their price target on shares of Caterpillar from $650.00 to $700.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research report on Wednesday, February 4th. UBS Group restated a “neutral” rating and issued a $677.00 price target on shares of Caterpillar in a research note on Monday, February 2nd. Bank of America increased their price objective on Caterpillar from $735.00 to $825.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Tuesday, February 10th. Finally, Daiwa Securities Group lifted their target price on Caterpillar from $640.00 to $790.00 in a report on Wednesday, February 25th. Sixteen analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, seven have assigned a Hold rating and one has given a Sell rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $724.81.

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.