Caterpillar Inc. $CAT Shares Acquired by Rakuten Investment Management Inc.

Rakuten Investment Management Inc. lifted its holdings in shares of Caterpillar Inc. (NYSE:CAT) by 9.2% in the third quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The fund owned 82,566 shares of the industrial products company’s stock after buying an additional 6,961 shares during the period. Rakuten Investment Management Inc.’s holdings in Caterpillar were worth $68,252,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently bought and sold shares of the company. BlackRock Inc. acquired a new position in Caterpillar in the second quarter valued at approximately $40,457,153,000. State Street Corp lifted its holdings in shares of Caterpillar by 4.0% in the 2nd quarter. State Street Corp now owns 36,276,960 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $37,120,529,000 after purchasing an additional 1,396,356 shares during the last quarter. Bank of America Corp DE bought a new stake in shares of Caterpillar in the 2nd quarter worth approximately $5,818,150,000. Bank of New York Mellon Corp acquired a new position in Caterpillar during the 2nd quarter valued at approximately $3,192,710,000. Finally, Legal & General Group Plc acquired a new position in Caterpillar during the 2nd quarter valued at approximately $2,783,451,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 70.98% of the company’s stock.

Trending Headlines about Caterpillar

Here are the key news stories impacting Caterpillar this week:

• Positive Sentiment: Caterpillar is expanding engine and turbine production to meet data-center demand, a growth opportunity for its power-generation business. The company also reported a record $78 billion backlog and strong quarterly growth, although margin pressure remains a concern. Article: Caterpillar expands production of engines and turbines to meet data center demand
• Positive Sentiment: Director James Fish bought 1,000 shares for about $620,000, increasing his holdings by roughly 27%. The insider purchase may signal confidence in Caterpillar’s prospects. Article: Caterpillar director share purchase
• Positive Sentiment: Freedom Capital Markets maintained a Buy rating after lowering its price target to $800 from $980, still indicating substantial potential upside from the price cited in the report. Article: Freedom Capital Markets price target
• Neutral Sentiment: Caterpillar completed its acquisition of long-time dealer John Fabick Tractor Company, adding its Missouri, Illinois, Wisconsin and Michigan Upper Peninsula operations to the company’s dealer network. The deal may strengthen regional customer support, though its near-term financial impact is unclear. Article: Caterpillar acquires Fabick Cat dealership
• Negative Sentiment: DA Davidson cut its price target to $685 from $882 and kept a Neutral rating, citing valuation concerns despite improving demand. The debate over whether Caterpillar’s premium valuation and margin pressures are justified could weigh on sentiment. Article: Caterpillar target cut and margin concerns

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several equities research analysts have weighed in on the company. Citigroup dropped their target price on Caterpillar from $950.00 to $800.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a research report on Friday, October 30th. DA Davidson reduced their price target on shares of Caterpillar from $882.00 to $685.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a report on Monday. Barclays lifted their price objective on shares of Caterpillar from $800.00 to $900.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a research report on Thursday, August 6th. UBS Group reduced their target price on shares of Caterpillar from $925.00 to $750.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a research note on Monday, October 26th. Finally, Erste Group Bank lowered shares of Caterpillar from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Monday, July 27th. Fifteen research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and twelve have issued a Hold rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $898.25.

Caterpillar Stock Performance

NYSE:CAT opened at $623.53 on Wednesday. The company has a 50-day moving average of $775.16 and a 200-day moving average of $807.33. The firm has a market cap of $286.62 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 24.46, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.05 and a beta of 1.65. The company has a current ratio of 1.42, a quick ratio of 0.88 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.50. Caterpillar Inc. has a twelve month low of $537.08 and a twelve month high of $1,073.46.

Caterpillar (NYSE:CAT) last released its earnings results on Thursday, October 29th. The industrial products company reported $7.20 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $7.06 by $0.14. The business had revenue of $20.68 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $20.76 billion. Caterpillar had a net margin of 15.21% and a return on equity of 59.87%. The business’s quarterly revenue was up 17.3% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the prior year, the business earned $4.95 earnings per share. Analysts forecast that Caterpillar Inc. will post 27.62 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Caterpillar Announces Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, November 19th. Stockholders of record on Monday, October 26th will be given a dividend of $1.63 per share. This represents a $6.52 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.0%. The ex-dividend date is Monday, October 26th. Caterpillar’s dividend payout ratio is 25.58%.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In related news, Director C Jr acquired 1,000 shares of Caterpillar stock in a transaction dated Monday, November 2nd. The stock was acquired at an average cost of $620.39 per share, with a total value of $620,390.00. Following the purchase, the director directly owned 4,714 shares in the company, valued at $2,924,518.46. The trade was a 26.93% increase in their position. The acquisition was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this hyperlink. Also, CEO Joseph E. Creed sold 32,401 shares of Caterpillar stock in a transaction on Friday, August 28th. The stock was sold at an average price of $808.98, for a total value of $26,211,760.98. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief executive officer owned 34,555 shares in the company, valued at $27,954,303.90. The trade was a 48.39% decrease in their ownership of the stock. Additional details regarding this sale are available in the official SEC disclosure. 0.33% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

Caterpillar Profile

Caterpillar Inc is a manufacturer of construction, mining, and industrial equipment. Its product portfolio includes excavators, bulldozers, wheel loaders, motor graders, articulated trucks, and other machinery used in construction, infrastructure development, mining, quarrying, forestry, and related industries. The company also produces diesel and natural gas engines, industrial gas turbines, generator sets, and other power-generation and transportation equipment.

Caterpillar operates through businesses focused on construction industries, resource industries, and energy and transportation.