Caterpillar Inc. (NYSE:CAT) Receives $995.52 Average Price Target from Analysts

Shares of Caterpillar Inc. (NYSE:CAT) have been given an average recommendation of “Moderate Buy” by the twenty-five research firms that are presently covering the stock, MarketBeat.com reports. Twelve equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and thirteen have given a buy rating to the company. The average 12-month price target among brokerages that have covered the stock in the last year is $995.5238.

Several brokerages have commented on CAT. Truist Financial set a $980.00 price target on Caterpillar in a report on Wednesday. Evercore restated an “outperform” rating and issued a $1,103.00 price objective on shares of Caterpillar in a research note on Monday, May 11th. Citigroup raised their target price on shares of Caterpillar from $1,020.00 to $1,100.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Tuesday, July 14th. Robert W. Baird set a $970.00 target price on shares of Caterpillar in a report on Wednesday. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company upped their price target on shares of Caterpillar from $1,050.00 to $1,155.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a report on Tuesday, June 23rd.

Insider Activity at Caterpillar

In other news, insider Denise C. Johnson sold 12,605 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Thursday, May 14th. The shares were sold at an average price of $907.91, for a total value of $11,444,205.55. Following the sale, the insider owned 49,825 shares in the company, valued at approximately $45,236,615.75. This trade represents a 20.19% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Also, CAO William E. Schaupp sold 360 shares of the stock in a transaction on Wednesday, May 13th. The shares were sold at an average price of $906.00, for a total transaction of $326,160.00. Following the completion of the sale, the chief accounting officer directly owned 530 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $480,180. This trade represents a 40.45% decrease in their ownership of the stock. Additional details regarding this sale are available in the official SEC disclosure. In the last 90 days, insiders have sold 19,161 shares of company stock valued at $17,407,424. 0.33% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Caterpillar

Institutional investors and hedge funds have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Vanguard Group Inc. grew its holdings in shares of Caterpillar by 1.0% during the 4th quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 46,385,185 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $26,572,681,000 after purchasing an additional 442,164 shares in the last quarter. BlackRock Inc. acquired a new position in shares of Caterpillar in the second quarter valued at $40,457,153,000. State Street Corp lifted its position in Caterpillar by 1.1% in the fourth quarter. State Street Corp now owns 35,388,550 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $20,273,039,000 after purchasing an additional 385,204 shares during the period. Geode Capital Management LLC boosted its stake in Caterpillar by 0.9% during the fourth quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 10,610,182 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $6,072,572,000 after buying an additional 94,524 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Fisher Asset Management LLC boosted its stake in Caterpillar by 0.6% during the fourth quarter. Fisher Asset Management LLC now owns 9,493,266 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $5,438,408,000 after buying an additional 54,069 shares in the last quarter. 70.98% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Caterpillar Stock Performance

CAT stock opened at $844.52 on Friday. The firm has a 50 day moving average of $921.04 and a two-hundred day moving average of $820.36. Caterpillar has a 12 month low of $405.46 and a 12 month high of $1,073.46. The company has a market capitalization of $388.20 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 36.34, a P/E/G ratio of 1.52 and a beta of 1.60. The company has a quick ratio of 0.85, a current ratio of 1.37 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.65.

Caterpillar (NYSE:CAT) last released its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, August 4th. The industrial products company reported $8.17 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $6.22 by $1.95. The business had revenue of $20.54 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $19.34 billion. Caterpillar had a net margin of 14.51% and a return on equity of 55.53%. Caterpillar’s revenue for the quarter was up 23.7% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter last year, the firm earned $4.72 EPS. As a group, equities analysts anticipate that Caterpillar will post 26.3 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Caterpillar Increases Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, August 19th. Investors of record on Monday, July 20th will be given a dividend of $1.63 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, July 20th. This represents a $6.52 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 0.8%. This is a boost from Caterpillar’s previous quarterly dividend of $1.51. Caterpillar’s payout ratio is presently 28.06%.

Key Stories Impacting Caterpillar

Here are the key news stories impacting Caterpillar this week:

• Positive Sentiment: AI data-center demand is emerging as a major growth driver. Caterpillar is expanding power-generation capacity to supply electricity for power-intensive hyperscale data centers. Jim Cramer highlighted the company’s generators as a key reason CAT has outperformed Deere, while other coverage described the AI infrastructure opportunity as still in its early stages. Jim Cramer Shares Key Reason Why Caterpillar’s Shares Are Higher Than Deere’s CAT Stock Alert: Caterpillar’s AI Infrastructure Boom Is Just Getting Started
• Positive Sentiment: A new hyperscaler infrastructure agreement reinforces the opportunity. Energy Vault announced a planned 1.25-gigawatt deployment of integrated power infrastructure for an AI data center, using Caterpillar generator sets through a power-generation engineering, procurement and construction partner. The agreement provides additional evidence that CAT’s energy products can benefit from data-center construction. Energy Vault Announces Strategic Agreement for Hyperscaler AI Data Center Infrastructure
• Positive Sentiment: Recent earnings and guidance remain powerful catalysts. Caterpillar reported quarterly EPS of $8.17 versus the $6.22 consensus and revenue of $20.54 billion versus expectations of $19.34 billion. Revenue increased 23.7% year over year, and the company raised its 2026 sales-growth outlook as AI-related construction demand continued. Caterpillar Lifts 2026 Sales Growth Forecast as AI Buildout Powers On
• Neutral Sentiment: Analyst sentiment is supportive but not uniformly aggressive: Caterpillar carries an average “Moderate Buy” rating, and Truist expects further upside. Coverage also notes CAT has outperformed industrial-products peers this year, although much of that optimism may already be reflected in the share price. Caterpillar Receives Moderate Buy Rating
• Negative Sentiment: Profit-taking and valuation are weighing on the stock. CAT has more than doubled from its 12-month low and trades at roughly 36 times earnings, leaving investors vulnerable to consolidation after the post-earnings surge. A pullback after the rally may therefore reflect high expectations rather than a new negative company announcement.

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.