Caterpillar Inc. (NYSE:CAT) Shares Purchased by Assenagon Asset Management S.A.

Assenagon Asset Management S.A. grew its holdings in Caterpillar Inc. (NYSE:CAT - Free Report) by 106.2% in the third quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor owned 317,828 shares of the industrial products company's stock after buying an additional 163,725 shares during the quarter. Assenagon Asset Management S.A. owned 0.06% of Caterpillar worth $124,309,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other institutional investors and hedge funds have also made changes to their positions in the company. Fairman Group LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Caterpillar during the first quarter worth approximately $29,000. Bbjs Financial Advisors LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Caterpillar during the second quarter worth approximately $28,000. Financial Connections Group Inc. purchased a new stake in shares of Caterpillar during the second quarter worth approximately $28,000. Fairscale Capital LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Caterpillar during the second quarter worth approximately $36,000. Finally, POM Investment Strategies LLC increased its position in shares of Caterpillar by 2,160.0% during the second quarter. POM Investment Strategies LLC now owns 113 shares of the industrial products company's stock worth $38,000 after purchasing an additional 108 shares in the last quarter. 70.98% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

CAT has been the subject of several research reports. Raymond James began coverage on Caterpillar in a research report on Friday, June 28th. They set a "market perform" rating for the company. StockNews.com cut Caterpillar from a "buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a report on Tuesday, September 24th. Barclays upped their target price on Caterpillar from $315.00 to $335.00 and gave the company an "equal weight" rating in a report on Wednesday, August 7th. Evercore ISI dropped their target price on Caterpillar from $338.00 to $321.00 and set an "in-line" rating for the company in a report on Monday, August 19th. Finally, UBS Group upped their price target on Caterpillar from $270.00 to $285.00 and gave the company a "sell" rating in a research note on Wednesday, August 7th. Three investment analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, nine have assigned a hold rating and seven have issued a buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, the stock has an average rating of "Hold" and an average target price of $355.50.

Insider Activity

In other news, insider Anthony D. Fassino sold 3,185 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Friday, August 30th. The stock was sold at an average price of $351.36, for a total value of $1,119,081.60. Following the transaction, the insider now owns 33,442 shares in the company, valued at approximately $11,750,181.12. This represents a 0.00 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this link. In other news, insider Anthony D. Fassino sold 3,185 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Friday, August 30th. The stock was sold at an average price of $351.36, for a total value of $1,119,081.60. Following the transaction, the insider now owns 33,442 shares in the company, valued at approximately $11,750,181.12. This represents a 0.00 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this link. Also, Director Gerald Johnson purchased 100 shares of the company'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 purchase, 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 ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this purchase can be found here. Company insiders own 0.33% of the company's stock.

Caterpillar Stock Up 0.3 %

CAT stock traded up $1.08 during mid-day trading on Thursday, reaching $386.81. The company had a trading volume of 1,844,070 shares, compared to its average volume of 2,627,509. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.39, a quick ratio of 0.78 and a current ratio of 1.28. The company has a market capitalization of $189.17 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 17.46, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.85 and a beta of 1.10. The firm has a fifty day simple moving average of $367.72 and a 200 day simple moving average of $350.86. Caterpillar Inc. has a fifty-two week low of $223.76 and a fifty-two week high of $403.60.

Caterpillar (NYSE:CAT - Get Free Report) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, August 6th. The industrial products company reported $5.99 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts' consensus estimates of $5.53 by $0.46. The company had revenue of $16.69 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $16.91 billion. Caterpillar had a return on equity of 59.88% and a net margin of 16.58%. Caterpillar's revenue for the quarter was down 3.6% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter last year, the company earned $5.55 EPS. Analysts forecast that Caterpillar Inc. will post 21.91 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Caterpillar Dividend Announcement

The firm 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 $1.41 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Monday, October 21st. This represents a $5.64 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.46%. Caterpillar's payout ratio is currently 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.