De Lange Bob 4

What Happened

• On Feb 11, 2026, Bob De Lange, Group President of Caterpillar Inc. (CAT), exercised stock options to acquire 15,000 shares at an exercise price of $127.60 per share (aggregate exercise cost $1,914,000).
• The resulting shares were used to satisfy tax withholding and for an open‑market sale: 2,493 shares were withheld/disposed for tax obligations at a weighted average price of $767.64 (≈ $1,913,727) and 12,507 shares were sold in the open market at a weighted average price of $767.08 (≈ $9,593,870).
• The net effect: 15,000 shares were acquired via option exercise (code M) and 15,000 shares were disposed (codes F for tax withholding and S for open market sale), consistent with a cashless exercise/sell-to-cover.

Key Details

• Transaction date: Feb 11, 2026; Form 4 filed Feb 13, 2026 (filed within the typical 2‑business‑day window).
• Exercise price: $127.60 per share for 15,000 shares (total exercise cost $1,914,000).
• Sales: 2,493 shares withheld for taxes at weighted avg $767.64 (≈ $1.91M); 12,507 shares sold in market at weighted avg $767.08 (≈ $9.59M). Footnote F1 notes multiple trades priced between $766.95 and $767.66 (weighted avg reported).
• Footnote F2: options were granted under the Caterpillar 2014 Long‑Term Incentive Plan on March 2, 2020 and vested in equal 1/3 increments over the first, second and third anniversaries of the grant date.
• Shares owned after the transaction: not specified in the details provided here — consult the full Form 4 for the “Amount of Securities Beneficially Owned” field.
• Insider status: officer (Group President), not reported as a 10% owner.

Context

• This is a typical option exercise with simultaneous sell-to-cover: the exercised shares funded the tax withholding and a larger open‑market sale. Such transactions are common when executives exercise vested options and do not necessarily signal a change in view on the company.
• For retail investors: purchases by insiders can be more indicative of conviction; routine option exercises followed by sales are often done for tax/liquidity reasons rather than as a market signal.