Caterpillar Inc. (NYSE:CAT) Receives $970.81 Average Price Target from Brokerages

Shares of Caterpillar Inc. (NYSE:CAT) have earned a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” from the twenty-five ratings firms that are currently covering the firm, Marketbeat reports. Ten investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold recommendation and fifteen have assigned a buy recommendation to the company. The average 12-month price objective among analysts that have updated their coverage on the stock in the last year is $980.5714.

A number of analysts have recently weighed in on CAT shares. Wells Fargo & Company boosted their price objective on shares of Caterpillar from $1,050.00 to $1,155.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research note on Tuesday, June 23rd. Wall Street Zen upgraded shares of Caterpillar from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a report on Saturday, May 2nd. Oppenheimer upped their price target on shares of Caterpillar from $980.00 to $1,105.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a report on Monday, July 13th. Daiwa Securities Group raised their price target on Caterpillar from $790.00 to $900.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research report on Friday, May 1st. Finally, UBS Group reissued a “neutral” rating and set a $900.00 price objective on shares of Caterpillar in a research report on Tuesday, June 2nd.

Caterpillar Price Performance

NYSE CAT opened at $881.26 on Monday. Caterpillar has a fifty-two week low of $405.46 and a fifty-two week high of $1,073.46. The stock’s 50-day moving average is $931.29 and its two-hundred day moving average is $794.97. The firm has a market cap of $405.90 billion, a P/E ratio of 43.87, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.72 and a beta of 1.57. 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 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $4.65 by $0.89. Caterpillar had a return on equity of 48.21% and a net margin of 13.33%.The business had revenue of $17.41 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $16.53 billion. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm posted $4.25 EPS. The firm’s revenue for the quarter was up 22.2% on a year-over-year basis. On average, analysts anticipate that Caterpillar will post 24.87 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Caterpillar Increases Dividend

The firm also recently declared 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. This represents a $6.52 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 0.7%. This is a boost from Caterpillar’s previous quarterly dividend of $1.51. The ex-dividend date is Monday, July 20th. Caterpillar’s dividend payout ratio is presently 30.06%.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other Caterpillar news, CFO Andrew R. J. Bonfield sold 15,674 shares of the stock in a transaction on 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 sale, the chief financial officer directly owned 52,935 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $48,631,913.85. This represents a 22.85% decrease in their position. The sale 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 business’s stock in a transaction dated 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 transaction, the insider owned 86,029 shares in the company, valued at approximately $79,397,884.68. The trade was a 21.97% decrease in their position. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. Insiders sold 95,773 shares of company stock valued at $87,642,635 in the last ninety days. Company insiders own 0.33% of the company’s stock.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Caterpillar

Several institutional investors and hedge funds have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Stonebridge Financial Group LLC raised its holdings in shares of Caterpillar by 0.7% during the second quarter. Stonebridge Financial Group LLC now owns 1,635 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $1,741,000 after purchasing an additional 11 shares during the period. Inspirion Wealth Advisors LLC boosted its holdings in shares of Caterpillar by 1.2% in the 2nd quarter. Inspirion Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 944 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $936,000 after buying an additional 11 shares during the period. Bell Bank grew its position in shares of Caterpillar by 0.6% during the 2nd quarter. Bell Bank now owns 1,865 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $1,986,000 after buying an additional 11 shares during the last quarter. Cornerstone Advisory LLC raised its stake in Caterpillar by 0.7% during the first quarter. Cornerstone Advisory LLC now owns 1,818 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $1,288,000 after acquiring an additional 12 shares during the period. Finally, Advisory Resource Group lifted its holdings in Caterpillar by 0.8% in the fourth quarter. Advisory Resource Group now owns 1,632 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $935,000 after acquiring an additional 13 shares during the last quarter. 70.98% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

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.

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.