Caterpillar Inc. $CAT is Willis Investment Counsel’s 7th Largest Position

Willis Investment Counsel lifted its stake in shares of Caterpillar Inc. (NYSE:CAT) by 2.8% in the fourth quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 79,891 shares of the industrial products company’s stock after purchasing an additional 2,160 shares during the period. Caterpillar comprises 2.4% of Willis Investment Counsel’s investment portfolio, making the stock its 7th biggest position. Willis Investment Counsel’s holdings in Caterpillar were worth $45,767,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission.

Several other large investors also recently bought and sold shares of CAT. Illinois Municipal Retirement Fund grew its stake in shares of Caterpillar by 7.3% in the 3rd quarter. Illinois Municipal Retirement Fund now owns 17,262 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $8,237,000 after buying an additional 1,181 shares during the period. Union Bancaire Privee UBP SA grew its stake in shares of Caterpillar by 155.9% in the 3rd quarter. Union Bancaire Privee UBP SA now owns 47,231 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $21,014,000 after buying an additional 28,773 shares during the period. Caprock Group LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Caterpillar in the 3rd quarter valued at approximately $8,893,000. ZEGA Investments LLC grew its stake in shares of Caterpillar by 149.6% in the 3rd quarter. ZEGA Investments LLC now owns 4,184 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $1,996,000 after buying an additional 2,508 shares during the period. Finally, State of New Jersey Common Pension Fund D grew its stake in shares of Caterpillar by 2.5% in the 3rd quarter. State of New Jersey Common Pension Fund D now owns 165,677 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $79,053,000 after buying an additional 4,010 shares during the period. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 70.98% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several analysts have recently weighed in on CAT shares. UBS Group reissued a “neutral” rating and issued a $677.00 price target on shares of Caterpillar in a research note on Monday, February 2nd. Wall Street Zen cut shares of Caterpillar from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Saturday, February 21st. Williams Trading set a $825.00 price target on shares of Caterpillar in a research note on Tuesday, March 10th. Raymond James Financial reaffirmed a “market perform” rating on shares of Caterpillar in a research report on Wednesday, January 7th. Finally, Sanford C. Bernstein reaffirmed a “market perform” rating and set a $678.00 price objective on shares of Caterpillar in a research report on Friday, January 30th. Sixteen investment analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, seven have assigned a Hold rating and one has given a Sell rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $737.55.

Caterpillar News Roundup

Here are the key news stories impacting Caterpillar this week:

• Positive Sentiment: Orderly leadership transition — long‑time CFO Andrew Bonfield will retire Oct. 1, 2026, and internal finance veteran Kyle Epley is named CFO effective May 1, which lowers execution risk and reassures markets about continuity. Caterpillar Elects New Chief Financial Officer
• Positive Sentiment: AI/data‑center tailwind & bullish flow — social and options activity highlight investor bets that CAT will benefit from rising generator demand for AI data centers and infrastructure spending, supporting upside momentum. Caterpillar Inc. Stock (CAT) Opinions on AI Data Center Generator Demand
• Positive Sentiment: Fundamentals and backlog support — sell‑side commentary and research note themes point to a $51B backlog, dealer inventory normalization and pricing/operating leverage that could sustain revenue and margin improvement. Caterpillar: AI-Driven Power Demand And Strong Backlog Support Continued Upside
• Neutral Sentiment: Dividend maintained — Board kept the quarterly payout at $1.51/share (payable May 19), signaling capital return consistency but little surprise to income investors. Caterpillar Inc. Maintains Dividend
• Neutral Sentiment: Broad market lift — CAT was among names leading the Dow higher in a strong market session, amplifying short‑term gains tied to macro momentum rather than company‑specific catalysts. Sherwin-Williams Co., Caterpillar share gains lead Dow’s 1,335-point surge
• Negative Sentiment: New legal risk — Caterpillar and Bobcat have filed mutual patent infringement suits, introducing litigation uncertainty and potential costs or injunction risk for some product lines. Caterpillar, Bobcat sue each other over patent infringement
• Negative Sentiment: Insider selling — sizable insider dispositions noted in recent data create a governance/optics headwind that some investors watch as a cautionary signal. Caterpillar Inc. Stock (CAT) Opinions on AI Data Center Generator Demand

Insider Activity

In related news, insider Anthony D. Fassino sold 7,891 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, February 13th. The shares were sold at an average price of $776.90, for a total value of $6,130,517.90. Following the sale, the insider owned 46,643 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $36,236,946.70. This trade represents a 14.47% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this hyperlink. Also, CAO William E. Schaupp sold 972 shares of Caterpillar stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, February 17th. The stock was sold at an average price of $764.20, for a total transaction of $742,802.40. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief accounting officer owned 824 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $629,700.80. This represents a 54.12% decrease in their position. Additional details regarding this sale are available in the official SEC disclosure. In the last three months, insiders sold 125,950 shares of company stock valued at $88,577,390. 0.33% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Caterpillar Stock Up 6.5%

Caterpillar stock opened at $771.46 on Thursday. The firm has a market capitalization of $358.95 billion, a P/E ratio of 40.99, a P/E/G ratio of 1.69 and a beta of 1.52. The company has a current ratio of 1.44, a quick ratio of 0.94 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.44. Caterpillar Inc. has a twelve month low of $269.13 and a twelve month high of $789.81. The stock’s fifty day simple moving average is $721.47 and its 200-day simple moving average is $619.87.

Caterpillar (NYSE:CAT) last released its earnings results on Thursday, January 29th. The industrial products company reported $5.16 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $4.67 by $0.49. Caterpillar had a return on equity of 45.76% and a net margin of 13.14%.The firm had revenue of $19.13 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $17.81 billion. During the same period last year, the business posted $5.14 earnings per share. Caterpillar’s revenue was up 17.9% compared to the same quarter last year. As a group, equities analysts expect that Caterpillar Inc. will post 19.86 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Caterpillar Announces Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, May 19th. Stockholders of record on Monday, April 20th will be given a dividend of $1.51 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, April 20th. This represents a $6.04 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 0.8%. Caterpillar’s payout ratio is currently 32.09%.

Caterpillar 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.