Erste Asset Management GmbH Lowers Holdings in Deere & Company $DE

Erste Asset Management GmbH lowered its position in shares of Deere & Company (NYSE:DE) by 29.0% in the third quarter, Holdings Channel reports. The institutional investor owned 34,084 shares of the industrial products company’s stock after selling 13,899 shares during the period. Erste Asset Management GmbH’s holdings in Deere & Company were worth $15,865,000 as of its most recent filing with the SEC.

Other hedge funds also recently made changes to their positions in the company. Howard Hughes Medical Institute purchased a new stake in shares of Deere & Company in the second quarter valued at about $27,000. Activest Wealth Management raised its holdings in Deere & Company by 69.2% during the third quarter. Activest Wealth Management now owns 66 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $30,000 after purchasing an additional 27 shares in the last quarter. Center for Financial Planning Inc. raised its holdings in Deere & Company by 406.7% during the second quarter. Center for Financial Planning Inc. now owns 76 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $39,000 after purchasing an additional 61 shares in the last quarter. United Community Bank lifted its position in Deere & Company by 67.3% in the third quarter. United Community Bank now owns 92 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $42,000 after purchasing an additional 37 shares during the period. Finally, Lynch Asset Management Inc. purchased a new stake in Deere & Company in the 3rd quarter valued at approximately $46,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 68.58% of the company’s stock.

Insider Activity at Deere & Company

In other Deere & Company news, CEO John C. May II sold 41,472 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Thursday, January 8th. The stock was sold at an average price of $501.49, for a total transaction of $20,797,793.28. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief executive officer owned 117,970 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $59,160,775.30. This trade represents a 26.01% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this link. Also, insider Cory J. Reed sold 12,000 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Wednesday, January 14th. The stock was sold at an average price of $510.00, for a total value of $6,120,000.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider directly owned 20,792 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $10,603,920. This trade represents a 36.59% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. Insiders own 0.29% of the company’s stock.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of equities analysts have recently issued reports on DE shares. DA Davidson increased their target price on Deere & Company from $580.00 to $775.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Friday, February 20th. UBS Group upped their price objective on Deere & Company from $535.00 to $775.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Friday, February 20th. Bank of America raised their target price on Deere & Company from $502.00 to $672.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a report on Friday, February 20th. Truist Financial boosted their target price on shares of Deere & Company from $612.00 to $793.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Friday, February 20th. Finally, Robert W. Baird increased their price target on shares of Deere & Company from $467.00 to $675.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a report on Friday, February 20th. Fifteen equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, eight have assigned a Hold rating and one has assigned a Sell rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $637.70.

Deere & Company Trading Up 1.6%

Shares of DE stock opened at $629.32 on Friday. The stock has a market cap of $170.59 billion, a P/E ratio of 35.47, a P/E/G ratio of 2.19 and a beta of 1.02. The company has a quick ratio of 1.96, a current ratio of 2.21 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.59. Deere & Company has a fifty-two week low of $404.42 and a fifty-two week high of $674.19. The business has a fifty day simple moving average of $537.84 and a 200-day simple moving average of $495.59.

Deere & Company (NYSE:DE) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, February 19th. The industrial products company reported $2.42 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.90 by $0.52. Deere & Company had a net margin of 10.29% and a return on equity of 18.93%. The firm had revenue of $9.61 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $7.50 billion. During the same period in the prior year, the company earned $3.19 EPS. The firm’s revenue was up 17.5% on a year-over-year basis. On average, analysts forecast that Deere & Company will post 19.32 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Deere & Company Announces Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, May 8th. Stockholders of record on Tuesday, March 31st will be paid a dividend of $1.62 per share. This represents a $6.48 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.0%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Tuesday, March 31st. Deere & Company’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 36.53%.

Deere & Company Company Profile

Deere & Company, commonly known by its brand John Deere, is a global manufacturer of agricultural, construction and forestry machinery, as well as turf care equipment and power systems. Founded in 1837 by blacksmith John Deere—who developed a polished steel plow to improve tillage in tough prairie soils—the company is headquartered in Moline, Illinois, and has grown into one of the largest and most recognizable names in equipment manufacturing worldwide.

The company’s principal businesses include a broad portfolio of agricultural equipment such as tractors, combines, planters, sprayers, harvesters and tillage implements, complemented by precision agriculture technologies and telematics that support farm management, yield optimization and equipment connectivity.