Zacks Research Lifts Earnings Estimates for Caterpillar

Caterpillar Inc. (NYSE:CAT - Free Report) - Equities research analysts at Zacks Research increased their Q1 2026 earnings per share (EPS) estimates for Caterpillar in a research note issued on Thursday, April 3rd. Zacks Research analyst M. Das now forecasts that the industrial products company will post earnings of $4.69 per share for the quarter, up from their previous estimate of $4.62. The consensus estimate for Caterpillar's current full-year earnings is $19.86 per share. Zacks Research also issued estimates for Caterpillar's Q2 2026 earnings at $5.25 EPS, Q3 2026 earnings at $5.48 EPS, Q4 2026 earnings at $5.74 EPS and FY2026 earnings at $21.16 EPS.

Several other analysts have also issued reports on CAT. Wedbush raised shares of Caterpillar to an "outperform" rating in a research report on Monday, February 3rd. Raymond James upgraded Caterpillar from a "market perform" rating to an "outperform" rating in a research note on Monday, February 3rd. Evercore ISI raised their price target on Caterpillar from $365.00 to $375.00 and gave the company an "in-line" rating in a report on Wednesday, February 19th. Morgan Stanley decreased their price objective on shares of Caterpillar from $330.00 to $300.00 and set an "underweight" rating on the stock in a report on Friday, January 31st. Finally, DA Davidson upped their price target on shares of Caterpillar from $350.00 to $357.00 and gave the company a "neutral" rating in a research note on Tuesday, February 4th. Two analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, eight have issued a hold rating and nine have assigned a buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, Caterpillar has an average rating of "Hold" and a consensus target price of $373.20.

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Caterpillar Stock Up 1.4 %

NYSE:CAT traded up $4.19 on Monday, hitting $293.35. 3,197,039 shares of the company's stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 2,625,986. The firm has a 50-day moving average price of $333.97 and a 200-day moving average price of $367.17. Caterpillar has a 52 week low of $267.30 and a 52 week high of $418.50. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.40, a current ratio of 1.42 and a quick ratio of 0.89. The company has a market cap of $140.20 billion, a P/E ratio of 13.29, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.87 and a beta of 1.21.

Caterpillar (NYSE:CAT - Get Free Report) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, January 30th. The industrial products company reported $5.14 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts' consensus estimates of $4.97 by $0.17. Caterpillar had a return on equity of 58.18% and a net margin of 16.65%.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

A number of large investors have recently modified their holdings of CAT. Flagship Wealth Advisors LLC acquired a new position in Caterpillar in the 4th quarter worth about $26,000. Halbert Hargrove Global Advisors LLC acquired a new position in shares of Caterpillar in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $27,000. Cyrus J. Lawrence LLC bought a new position in Caterpillar in the 4th quarter valued at approximately $27,000. Noble Wealth Management PBC acquired a new stake in Caterpillar during the 4th quarter worth approximately $31,000. Finally, Investment Management Corp VA ADV bought a new stake in Caterpillar during the 4th quarter worth approximately $33,000. 70.98% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Insider Buying and Selling at Caterpillar

In other news, CFO Andrew R. J. Bonfield sold 10,000 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Thursday, January 16th. The shares were sold at an average price of $380.09, for a total value of $3,800,900.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief financial officer now owns 45,182 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $17,173,226.38. This represents a 18.12 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Also, insider Jason Kaiser sold 2,425 shares of Caterpillar stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, February 18th. The shares were sold at an average price of $354.70, for a total transaction of $860,147.50. Following the sale, the insider now directly owns 6,275 shares in the company, valued at $2,225,742.50. This trade represents a 27.87 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Company insiders own 0.29% of the company's stock.

Caterpillar Announces Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, May 20th. Shareholders of record on Monday, April 21st will be paid a dividend of $1.41 per share. This represents a $5.64 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.92%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, April 21st. Caterpillar's payout ratio is presently 25.56%.

Caterpillar Company Profile

Caterpillar Inc manufactures and sells construction and mining equipment, off-highway diesel and natural gas engines, industrial gas turbines, and diesel-electric locomotives in worldwide. Its Construction Industries segment offers asphalt pavers, compactors, road reclaimers, forestry machines, cold planers, material handlers, track-type tractors, excavators, telehandlers, motor graders, and pipelayers; compact track, wheel, track-type, backhoe, and skid steer loaders; and related parts and tools.