Caterpillar Inc. (often shortened to CAT) is an American Fortune 100 corporation which designs, develops, engineers, manufactures, markets, and sells machinery, engines, financial products, and insurance to customers via a worldwide dealer network. It is the world’s largest construction equipment manufacturer.
In 2018, Caterpillar was ranked #65 on the Fortune 500 list and #238 on the Global Fortune 500 list. Caterpillar stock is a component of the Dow Jones Industrial Average.
Caterpillar Inc. traces its origins to the 1925 merger of the Holt Manufacturing Company and the C. L. Best Tractor Company, creating a new entity, the California-based Caterpillar Tractor Company.
In 1986, the company reorganized itself as a Delaware corporation under the current name, Caterpillar Inc. Caterpillar’s headquarters are located in Deerfield, Illinois; it announced in January 2017 that over the course of that year it would relocate its headquarters from Peoria, Illinois, to Deerfield, Illinois, scrapping plans from 2015 of building an $800 million new headquarters complex in downtown Peoria.
The company also licenses and markets a line of clothing and workwear boots under its Cat / Caterpillar name. Caterpillar machinery is recognizable by its trademark “Caterpillar Yellow” livery and the “CAT” logo.
Traded as: NYSE: CAT; DJIA component; S&P 100 component; S&P 500 component
Industry: Heavy equipment; Engines; Financial services
Predecessor: C. L. Best Holt Manufacturing Company
Founded: April 15, 1925; 95 years ago
Founder: C.L. Best
Headquarters: Deerfield, Illinois, U.S.
Subsidiaries:
- Caterpillar Financial Services
- Caterpillar Insurance Holdings
- Caterpillar Logistics Services
- Caterpillar Marine Power Systems
- FG Wilson
- Perkins Engines
- Progress Rail Services
- Solar Turbines
Website: www.caterpillar.com