The 'Big Short' investor bet against the construction giant at $1,060.98, calling its valuation 'not supported by the actual business'
Michael Burry, the investor who became a household name by predicting the 2008 housing crisis, just placed a bet against one of America’s most iconic industrial companies.
Caterpillar shares dropped between 4.4% and 6.65% on July 1 after Burry disclosed on his Substack newsletter, “Cassandra Unchained,” that he had initiated a short position in the stock at $1,060.98. The decline pulled CAT back from record territory, where it had been sitting comfortably after an 86% surge during the first half of 2026.
A surprising target from an unlikely bear
Burry acknowledged that CAT has historically been a strong performer in his portfolio as a long position. He said the company’s current price was “not supported by the actual business.” Its price-to-sales ratio had climbed to multi-decade highs.
Caterpillar closed June at approximately $1,064.90, meaning Burry entered his short almost exactly at the top.
The construction and mining equipment giant had been swept up in the broader AI-driven market rally that defined the first half of 2026. The AI infrastructure buildout requires enormous physical construction, from new semiconductor fabs to hyperscale data centers, and Caterpillar has been a beneficiary of that spending wave.
Burry’s broader bearish portfolio
On June 30, Burry also disclosed short positions in several tech and semiconductor stocks. He shorted Nvidia at $198.09, Tesla at $416.22, Applied Materials at $729.40, and the iShares Semiconductor ETF (SOXX) at $642.80.
These disclosures came through Burry’s newsletter rather than through traditional regulatory filings. His investment firm, Scion Asset Management, deregistered in late 2025, which eliminated the requirement to file 13F reports with the SEC.
