Caterpillar (NYSE:CAT) Rating Increased to Buy at Wall Street Zen

Wall Street Zen upgraded shares of Caterpillar (NYSE:CAT) from a hold rating to a buy rating in a research report released on Saturday.

CAT has been the subject of several other reports. HSBC upped their price target on shares of Caterpillar from $660.00 to $850.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Thursday, February 5th. Robert W. Baird boosted their price objective on Caterpillar from $940.00 to $1,165.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research report on Friday. Oppenheimer set a $980.00 target price on Caterpillar and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research report on Friday. Wells Fargo & Company lifted their price target on Caterpillar from $960.00 to $1,050.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research note on Friday. Finally, Sanford C. Bernstein upped their price objective on Caterpillar from $769.00 to $879.00 and gave the company a “market perform” rating in a research note on Friday. Sixteen analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and nine have issued a Hold rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $862.32.

Caterpillar Stock Up 0.0%

Shares of NYSE CAT opened at $890.15 on Friday. The company has a market cap of $414.18 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 44.31, a PEG ratio of 2.05 and a beta of 1.63. The company has a current ratio of 1.35, a quick ratio of 0.94 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.64. Caterpillar has a 12 month low of $318.11 and a 12 month high of $905.00. The stock has a 50-day moving average price of $746.86 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $656.09.

Caterpillar (NYSE:CAT) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, April 30th. The industrial products company reported $5.54 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $4.65 by $0.89. The company had revenue of $17.42 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $16.53 billion. Caterpillar had a net margin of 13.33% and a return on equity of 48.21%. The firm’s revenue was up 22.2% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the previous year, the firm posted $4.25 EPS. As a group, analysts forecast that Caterpillar will post 23.08 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Caterpillar Announces Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, May 19th. Shareholders of record on Monday, April 20th will be given a $1.51 dividend. This represents a $6.04 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 0.7%. The ex-dividend date is Monday, April 20th. Caterpillar’s payout ratio is 32.09%.

Insider Activity at Caterpillar

In other news, insider Denise C. Johnson sold 39,138 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Monday, February 2nd. The stock was sold at an average price of $681.08, for a total transaction of $26,656,109.04. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider directly owned 43,350 shares in the company, valued at $29,524,818. This trade represents a 47.45% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through the SEC website. Also, insider Rodney Michael Shurman sold 2,278 shares of Caterpillar stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, February 23rd. The stock was sold at an average price of $759.61, for a total value of $1,730,391.58. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider directly owned 1,443 shares in the company, valued at approximately $1,096,117.23. This represents a 61.22% decrease in their ownership of the stock. Additional details regarding this sale are available in the official SEC disclosure. Insiders sold 125,950 shares of company stock valued at $88,577,390 over the last ninety days. Insiders own 0.33% of the company’s stock.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Caterpillar

A number of hedge funds have recently bought and sold shares of CAT. Pacific Point Advisors LLC bought a new stake in shares of Caterpillar during the 4th quarter valued at about $579,000. Brighton Jones LLC increased its position in Caterpillar by 51.5% in the 4th quarter. Brighton Jones LLC now owns 7,409 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $2,688,000 after buying an additional 2,519 shares in the last quarter. United Bank increased its position in Caterpillar by 108.5% in the 2nd quarter. United Bank now owns 4,083 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $1,585,000 after buying an additional 2,125 shares in the last quarter. Schnieders Capital Management LLC. raised its stake in Caterpillar by 3.9% during the 2nd quarter. Schnieders Capital Management LLC. now owns 9,147 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $3,551,000 after buying an additional 347 shares during the period. Finally, Alliancebernstein L.P. boosted its holdings in Caterpillar by 6.5% in the second quarter. Alliancebernstein L.P. now owns 572,165 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $222,120,000 after acquiring an additional 34,846 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors own 70.98% of the company’s stock.

Key Stories Impacting Caterpillar

Here are the key news stories impacting Caterpillar this week:

• Positive Sentiment: Caterpillar beat Q1 revenue and EPS expectations and reported a record backlog, driven by higher volume and pricing across construction and power systems — a core reason the stock rallied after earnings. Caterpillar expects AI-driven demand for power, construction to fuel growth — Reuters
• Positive Sentiment: Analysts sharply raised price targets and upgraded ratings (JPMorgan, Jefferies, Wells Fargo, Baird, Citigroup, Morgan Stanley among others), signaling renewed street confidence and creating upward momentum for the stock. Morgan Stanley Doubles Price Target to $915 — 247WallSt
• Positive Sentiment: Demand tied to AI/data-center buildouts is boosting Cat’s power and energy backlog; management is raising 2030 targets and plans to roughly triple power-generation capacity, which supports a multi-year growth runway beyond cyclical construction. Caterpillar to triple power generation capacity — Yahoo Finance
• Positive Sentiment: Market narrative has shifted: short interest and skeptical bears are receding as the AI-power story gains traction, amplifying upside as skeptics fold. Caterpillar’s biggest bear folds as AI power demand soars — Mining.com
• Positive Sentiment: Strategic partnerships (e.g., framework with ProPetro’s PROPWR) and large supply agreements for data-center and industrial power strengthen the revenue mix in higher-margin power systems. Caterpillar taps PROPWR and data centers — Yahoo Finance
• Neutral Sentiment: Technical momentum is strong (IBD composite rating surged toward the top of the universe) and the company announced a virtual annual shareholder meeting; these are market-interest and governance items rather than direct catalysts. IBD Composite Rating Surges — Yahoo/IBD
• Negative Sentiment: Management warned of significant tariff costs for 2026 — a $2.2B–$2.4B range — that will pressure margins and partially offset revenue strength; investors should watch margin trends and any changes to the tariff outlook. Caterpillar signals tariff cost range and 2026 sales growth — Seeking Alpha

About Caterpillar

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.