Deere & Company (NYSE:DE) Short Interest Down 21.3% in February

Deere & Company (NYSE:DE) was the target of a large decline in short interest during the month of February. As of February 27th, there was short interest totaling 4,991,541 shares, a decline of 21.3% from the February 12th total of 6,346,495 shares. Approximately 1.9% of the company’s stock are sold short. Based on an average daily volume of 2,564,173 shares, the short-interest ratio is currently 1.9 days. Based on an average daily volume of 2,564,173 shares, the short-interest ratio is currently 1.9 days. Approximately 1.9% of the company’s stock are sold short.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

DE has been the topic of several research analyst reports. Evercore reissued a “positive” rating on shares of Deere & Company in a research report on Friday, November 28th. Weiss Ratings reaffirmed a “hold (c+)” rating on shares of Deere & Company in a report on Monday, December 29th. Sanford C. Bernstein increased their price target on shares of Deere & Company from $521.00 to $615.00 and gave the company a “market perform” rating in a research note on Friday, February 20th. BMO Capital Markets raised their price objective on shares of Deere & Company from $460.00 to $500.00 and gave the stock a “market perform” rating in a report on Friday, February 20th. Finally, Wolfe Research upped their target price on shares of Deere & Company from $520.00 to $550.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a report on Friday, January 2nd. Sixteen investment analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, eight have assigned a Hold rating and one has issued a Sell rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $644.70.

Insiders Place Their Bets

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

Institutional Trading of Deere & Company

A number of large investors have recently bought and sold shares of the business. Strategic Advocates LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Deere & Company during the third quarter worth about $25,000. Howard Hughes Medical Institute acquired a new position in Deere & Company in the 2nd quarter valued at about $27,000. Key Capital Management INC purchased a new stake in Deere & Company during the 4th quarter valued at approximately $27,000. Timmons Wealth Management LLC acquired a new stake in Deere & Company during the 4th quarter worth approximately $29,000. Finally, Activest Wealth Management lifted its position in Deere & Company by 69.2% during the 3rd quarter. Activest Wealth Management now owns 66 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $30,000 after acquiring an additional 27 shares during the period. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 68.58% of the company’s stock.

Deere & Company Stock Performance

NYSE:DE traded down $5.06 during mid-day trading on Monday, reaching $572.44. 1,150,876 shares of the stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 1,793,712. The stock has a market capitalization of $154.62 billion, a P/E ratio of 32.27, a P/E/G ratio of 2.02 and a beta of 0.96. Deere & Company has a 1 year low of $404.42 and a 1 year high of $674.19. The company has a 50 day simple moving average of $566.34 and a 200-day simple moving average of $503.71. 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 (NYSE:DE) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, February 19th. The industrial products company reported $2.42 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.90 by $0.52. The company had revenue of $9.61 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $7.50 billion. Deere & Company had a return on equity of 18.93% and a net margin of 10.29%.The firm’s revenue for the quarter was up 17.5% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the previous year, the business earned $3.19 earnings per share. Analysts anticipate that Deere & Company will post 19.32 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Deere & Company Announces Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, May 8th. Stockholders of record on Tuesday, March 31st will be issued a $1.62 dividend. This represents a $6.48 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.1%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Tuesday, March 31st. Deere & Company’s payout ratio is presently 36.53%.

About Deere & Company

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.