Wall Street Zen Upgrades Caterpillar (NYSE:CAT) to “Buy”

Caterpillar (NYSE:CAT) was upgraded by stock analysts at Wall Street Zen from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a research note issued on Saturday, Wall Street Zen reports.

A number of other equities analysts also recently issued reports on CAT. JPMorgan Chase & Co. increased their price target on shares of Caterpillar from $1,125.00 to $1,165.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research note on Wednesday, June 17th. Sanford C. Bernstein restated a “market perform” rating and issued a $1,002.00 price objective on shares of Caterpillar in a report on Wednesday, August 5th. Weiss Ratings cut Caterpillar from a “buy (b)” rating to a “buy (b-)” rating in a research report on Tuesday, September 29th. Needham & Company LLC set a $980.00 target price on Caterpillar in a report on Thursday, September 10th. Finally, Zacks Research downgraded Caterpillar from a “strong-buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Monday, October 5th. Fifteen equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and twelve have assigned a Hold rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, Caterpillar presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $989.17.

Caterpillar Stock Up 0.0%

Shares of Caterpillar stock opened at $800.64 on Friday. The company has a current ratio of 1.37, a quick ratio of 0.85 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.65. The company’s fifty day simple moving average is $822.31 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $854.67. The company has a market cap of $368.03 billion, a P/E ratio of 34.45, a PEG ratio of 1.38 and a beta of 1.58. Caterpillar has a 12-month low of $491.30 and a 12-month high of $1,073.46.

Caterpillar (NYSE:CAT) last posted its earnings results on Tuesday, August 4th. The industrial products company reported $8.17 EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $6.22 by $1.95. The firm had revenue of $20.54 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $19.34 billion. Caterpillar had a net margin of 14.51% and a return on equity of 55.53%. The company’s quarterly revenue was up 23.7% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period last year, the company posted $4.72 EPS. Research analysts anticipate that Caterpillar will post 27.49 EPS for the current year.

Insider Activity at Caterpillar

In other news, CEO Joseph E. Creed sold 32,401 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Friday, August 28th. The shares were sold at an average price of $808.98, for a total value of $26,211,760.98. Following the sale, the chief executive officer directly owned 34,555 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $27,954,303.90. This represents a 48.39% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through the SEC website. Company insiders own 0.33% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Institutional investors have recently modified their holdings of the business. BlackRock Inc. purchased a new position in shares of Caterpillar during the 2nd quarter worth $40,457,153,000. State Street Corp grew its holdings in shares of Caterpillar by 4.0% in the second quarter. State Street Corp now owns 36,276,960 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $37,120,529,000 after purchasing an additional 1,396,356 shares during the period. Bank of America Corp DE purchased a new stake in shares of Caterpillar in the second quarter valued at about $5,818,150,000. Bank of New York Mellon Corp acquired a new stake in Caterpillar during the second quarter worth about $3,192,710,000. Finally, Legal & General Group Plc acquired a new stake in Caterpillar during the second quarter worth about $2,783,451,000. 70.98% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Caterpillar News Summary

Here are the key news stories impacting Caterpillar this week:

• Positive Sentiment: Strong volume growth supports higher earnings expectations. Caterpillar’s first-half 2026 volume gains added approximately $5.4 billion to revenue, with momentum across all three major segments prompting a higher full-year outlook. Will Caterpillar’s Strong Volume Growth Keep Driving Sales Up in 2026?
• Positive Sentiment: Analysts raised longer-term EPS forecasts. Zacks Research increased its estimates for first- and second-quarter 2028 earnings and lifted its FY2028 forecast to $39.15 per share from $36.64, reinforcing expectations for continued earnings growth, although it maintained a Hold rating. Zacks Research earnings estimates
• Positive Sentiment: North Carolina investment signals capacity expansion. Caterpillar plans to invest about $1 billion in a technology-enabled, automation-heavy facility in Sanford to produce compact track loaders and telehandlers. The project could broaden its reach among small contractors, rental fleets and light-industrial customers while improving manufacturing efficiency. Caterpillar to invest $1 billion in North Carolina manufacturing facility
• Positive Sentiment: Construction-cycle exposure remains a bullish theme. J.P. Morgan described CAT as a major beneficiary of an extended U.S. construction cycle, while coverage also highlighted Caterpillar’s dealer network and use of artificial intelligence to enhance heavy-industry operations. Caterpillar Is the Market in a Single Stock
• Neutral Sentiment: Technical conditions remain unsettled. CAT recently fell below its 50-day moving average after a sharp selloff, but analysts identify historical trendline support and argue that the company’s backlog and earnings outlook could enable a rebound. Caterpillar Stock Could Bounce From Key Trendline
• Negative Sentiment: Rates and regulatory scrutiny are weighing on sentiment. A sharp rise in long-term Treasury yields has pressured the valuation of this economically sensitive industrial stock, while scrutiny of agricultural-equipment practices adds headline risk. Truist also reduced its price target, though it remains above the current market level. Caterpillar Faces Regulatory And Rate Pressure

Caterpillar Company Profile

Caterpillar Inc is a global manufacturer of construction and mining equipment, diesel and natural gas engines, industrial gas turbines, and diesel-electric locomotives. Its products are used in infrastructure development, construction, mining, energy production, transportation, agriculture, forestry, and other industrial applications.

The company markets equipment and related services through a worldwide network of independent dealers. Its operations are generally organized around Construction Industries, Resource Industries, and Energy & Transportation.