MML Investors Services LLC Decreases Stake in Caterpillar Inc. $CAT

MML Investors Services LLC reduced its stake in Caterpillar Inc. (NYSE:CAT) by 2.4% during the fourth quarter, Holdings Channel.com reports. The firm owned 148,909 shares of the industrial products company’s stock after selling 3,689 shares during the period. MML Investors Services LLC’s holdings in Caterpillar were worth $85,306,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other large investors have also bought and sold shares of the stock. Vanguard Group Inc. increased its stake in Caterpillar by 1.0% in 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 during the period. State Street Corp increased its stake in Caterpillar by 1.1% in the 4th 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 increased its stake in Caterpillar by 0.9% in the 4th quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 10,610,182 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $6,072,572,000 after purchasing an additional 94,524 shares during the period. Fisher Asset Management LLC increased its stake in shares of 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 valued at $5,438,408,000 after buying an additional 54,069 shares during the period. Finally, Wellington Management Group LLP increased its stake in shares of Caterpillar by 3,949.8% during the third quarter. Wellington Management Group LLP now owns 5,228,058 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $2,494,568,000 after buying an additional 5,098,964 shares during the period. 70.98% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Caterpillar Trading Up 0.0%

NYSE CAT opened at $910.78 on Monday. 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 Inc. has a twelve month low of $355.70 and a twelve month high of $946.83. The firm has a market capitalization of $419.50 billion, a PE ratio of 45.34, a P/E/G ratio of 1.80 and a beta of 1.59. The stock’s 50 day moving average is $851.85 and its 200 day moving average is $727.82.

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 the consensus estimate of $4.65 by $0.89. Caterpillar had a return on equity of 48.21% and a net margin of 13.33%.The company had revenue of $17.42 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $16.53 billion. During the same period in the previous year, the company posted $4.25 earnings per share. The firm’s revenue was up 22.2% on a year-over-year basis. Research analysts forecast that Caterpillar Inc. will post 24.62 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Caterpillar Increases Dividend

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

Key Headlines Impacting Caterpillar

Here are the key news stories impacting Caterpillar this week:

• Positive Sentiment: Caterpillar raised its quarterly dividend by 8% to $1.63 per share, extending its dividend-growth streak to 32 consecutive years and signaling confidence in cash generation and future returns to shareholders.
• Positive Sentiment: Analysts at Erste Group lifted FY2026 and FY2027 earnings estimates for Caterpillar, reflecting expectations for stronger profitability ahead.
• Positive Sentiment: Caterpillar was highlighted on Zacks’ “best momentum stocks” list, which can reinforce bullish trader interest and momentum buying.
• Positive Sentiment: Recent bullish commentary pointed to strong Q1 results, including 22% revenue growth and a backlog of $62.7 billion, suggesting healthy demand across Caterpillar’s core markets.
• Neutral Sentiment: Caterpillar and Austal announced a global value agreement, but the available details do not clearly indicate a material near-term financial impact for CAT. Austal and Caterpillar in Global Value Agreement
• Negative Sentiment: Some market commentary warned that Caterpillar’s recent run-up leaves the stock vulnerable to a reversal on valuation concerns after a sharp move higher.
• Negative Sentiment: The stock also recently pulled back from its year-to-date high, with technical traders citing a possible double-top pattern, which may be limiting near-term upside.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other Caterpillar news, CAO William E. Schaupp sold 360 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Wednesday, May 13th. The stock was sold at an average price of $906.00, for a total value of $326,160.00. Following the sale, the chief accounting officer directly owned 530 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $480,180. The trade was a 40.45% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this link. Also, insider Anthony D. Fassino sold 16,283 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Monday, May 11th. The stock was 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 $42,210,388.80. This trade represents a 26.13% decrease in their ownership of the stock. Additional details regarding this sale are available in the official SEC disclosure. In the last ninety days, insiders sold 95,773 shares of company stock valued at $87,642,635. Company insiders own 0.33% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several equities analysts have recently issued reports on CAT shares. Sanford C. Bernstein boosted their target price on Caterpillar from $769.00 to $879.00 and gave the company a “market perform” rating in a research note on Friday, May 1st. HSBC boosted their target price on Caterpillar from $850.00 to $1,100.00 in a research note on Tuesday, May 5th. Williams Trading set a $825.00 target price on Caterpillar in a research note on Tuesday, March 10th. Wall Street Zen raised Caterpillar from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a research note on Saturday, May 2nd. Finally, Barclays boosted their target price on Caterpillar from $700.00 to $800.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a research note on Friday, May 1st. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, sixteen have assigned a Buy rating and nine have issued a Hold rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $933.27.

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.