Assenagon Asset Management S.A. Purchases 163,725 Shares of Caterpillar Inc. (NYSE:CAT)

Assenagon Asset Management S.A. raised its holdings in shares of Caterpillar Inc. (NYSE:CAT) by 106.2% during the 3rd quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund owned 317,828 shares of the industrial products company’s stock after purchasing an additional 163,725 shares during the period. Assenagon Asset Management S.A. owned approximately 0.06% of Caterpillar worth $124,309,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other institutional investors and hedge funds have also modified their holdings of CAT. Acadian Asset Management LLC raised its position in Caterpillar by 17.2% in the 1st quarter. Acadian Asset Management LLC now owns 9,037 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $3,308,000 after buying an additional 1,327 shares during the last quarter. Alpha Cubed Investments LLC raised its holdings in shares of Caterpillar by 5.6% during the third quarter. Alpha Cubed Investments LLC now owns 116,566 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $45,591,000 after purchasing an additional 6,212 shares during the last quarter. Diversify Advisory Services LLC bought a new position in Caterpillar during the first quarter valued at approximately $926,000. First Affirmative Financial Network purchased a new stake in Caterpillar in the third quarter worth approximately $204,000. Finally, Inspire Advisors LLC raised its stake in Caterpillar by 25.8% during the 3rd quarter. Inspire Advisors LLC now owns 8,266 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $3,233,000 after buying an additional 1,694 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors own 70.98% of the company’s stock.

Insider Activity

In other news, insider Anthony D. Fassino sold 3,185 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Friday, August 30th. The shares were sold at an average price of $351.36, for a total value of $1,119,081.60. Following the sale, the insider now directly owns 33,442 shares in the company, valued at $11,750,181.12. The trade was a 0.00 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available at the SEC website. In other Caterpillar news, insider Anthony D. Fassino sold 3,185 shares of Caterpillar stock in a transaction on Friday, August 30th. The shares were sold at an average price of $351.36, for a total transaction of $1,119,081.60. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider now directly owns 33,442 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $11,750,181.12. The trade was a 0.00 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this hyperlink. Also, Director Gerald Johnson purchased 100 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, September 4th. The shares were purchased at an average price of $338.59 per share, for a total transaction of $33,859.00. Following the completion of the acquisition, the director now directly owns 2,842 shares in the company, valued at $962,272.78. The trade was a 0.00 % increase in their position. The disclosure for this purchase can be found here. Corporate insiders own 0.33% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

CAT has been the subject of several research analyst reports. Raymond James began coverage on Caterpillar in a report on Friday, June 28th. They issued a “market perform” rating for the company. Bank of America upped their price target on shares of Caterpillar from $376.00 to $434.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Monday, September 30th. Truist Financial boosted their target price on shares of Caterpillar from $399.00 to $456.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Wednesday, October 9th. UBS Group increased their price target on shares of Caterpillar from $270.00 to $285.00 and gave the stock a “sell” rating in a research report on Wednesday, August 7th. Finally, Barclays boosted their price objective on shares of Caterpillar from $315.00 to $335.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a research report on Wednesday, August 7th. Three research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, nine have issued a hold rating and seven have issued a buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, Caterpillar has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $355.50.

Caterpillar Price Performance

Shares of NYSE:CAT traded down $0.91 during midday trading on Thursday, reaching $384.82. 576,477 shares of the company were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 2,621,355. The stock has a market cap of $188.20 billion, a PE ratio of 17.36, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.85 and a beta of 1.10. The business’s fifty day moving average is $366.90 and its two-hundred day moving average is $350.61. Caterpillar Inc. has a one year low of $223.76 and a one year high of $403.60. The company has a current ratio of 1.28, a quick ratio of 0.78 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.39.

Caterpillar (NYSE:CAT) last released its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, August 6th. The industrial products company reported $5.99 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $5.53 by $0.46. Caterpillar had a net margin of 16.58% and a return on equity of 59.88%. The business had revenue of $16.69 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $16.91 billion. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm earned $5.55 EPS. The business’s revenue was down 3.6% on a year-over-year basis. As a group, analysts predict that Caterpillar Inc. will post 21.91 earnings per share for the current year.

Caterpillar Announces Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, November 20th. Stockholders of record on Monday, October 21st will be issued a dividend of $1.41 per share. The ex-dividend date is Monday, October 21st. This represents a $5.64 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.47%. Caterpillar’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 25.46%.

Caterpillar 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.