Essex LLC Sells 965 Shares of Deere & Company (NYSE:DE)

Essex LLC decreased its stake in shares of Deere & Company (NYSE:DE) by 7.2% during the fourth quarter, according to its most recent filing with the SEC. The institutional investor owned 12,440 shares of the industrial products company’s stock after selling 965 shares during the period. Deere & Company accounts for 1.1% of Essex LLC’s investment portfolio, making the stock its 19th largest position. Essex LLC’s holdings in Deere & Company were worth $5,271,000 as of its most recent filing with the SEC.

Other large investors have also added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Everence Capital Management Inc. grew its position in shares of Deere & Company by 148.3% during the 4th quarter. Everence Capital Management Inc. now owns 12,223 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $5,179,000 after purchasing an additional 7,300 shares in the last quarter. Stockbridge Partners LLC raised its holdings in shares of Deere & Company by 157.5% in the 3rd quarter. Stockbridge Partners LLC now owns 884,237 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $369,019,000 after acquiring an additional 540,874 shares in the last quarter. Toronto Dominion Bank raised its holdings in shares of Deere & Company by 1.5% in the 3rd quarter. Toronto Dominion Bank now owns 86,952 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $36,288,000 after acquiring an additional 1,291 shares in the last quarter. Chase Investment Counsel Corp boosted its position in shares of Deere & Company by 53.8% during the 3rd quarter. Chase Investment Counsel Corp now owns 4,000 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $1,669,000 after acquiring an additional 1,400 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Czech National Bank grew its holdings in shares of Deere & Company by 5.7% during the fourth quarter. Czech National Bank now owns 55,170 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $23,376,000 after purchasing an additional 2,964 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors own 68.58% of the company’s stock.

Deere & Company Stock Up 0.1 %

Shares of NYSE DE opened at $465.63 on Friday. The firm’s fifty day moving average is $445.00 and its 200 day moving average is $412.86. Deere & Company has a 52 week low of $340.20 and a 52 week high of $485.84. The company has a quick ratio of 1.90, a current ratio of 2.09 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.89. The company has a market cap of $126.82 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 18.19, a PEG ratio of 2.87 and a beta of 0.98.

Deere & Company (NYSE:DE) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, November 21st. The industrial products company reported $4.55 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $3.89 by $0.66. The business had revenue of $9.28 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $9.20 billion. Deere & Company had a net margin of 13.73% and a return on equity of 31.32%. The company’s revenue was down 32.8% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter last year, the firm earned $8.26 EPS. On average, equities research analysts expect that Deere & Company will post 19.38 earnings per share for the current year.

Deere & Company Increases Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, February 10th. Shareholders of record on Tuesday, December 31st will be given a dividend of $1.62 per share. This is a positive change from Deere & Company’s previous quarterly dividend of $1.47. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Tuesday, December 31st. This represents a $6.48 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.39%. Deere & Company’s dividend payout ratio is presently 25.31%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

DE has been the topic of a number of recent analyst reports. UBS Group raised their target price on shares of Deere & Company from $404.00 to $462.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research note on Friday, November 22nd. Morgan Stanley raised their price objective on shares of Deere & Company from $401.00 to $450.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research report on Monday, November 25th. Jefferies Financial Group lowered shares of Deere & Company from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating and set a $510.00 target price for the company. in a research report on Friday, December 6th. Citigroup reduced their target price on Deere & Company from $470.00 to $430.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a research note on Tuesday, January 14th. Finally, Barclays upped their price objective on Deere & Company from $400.00 to $475.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a report on Friday, November 22nd. Eleven investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and nine have assigned a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the company currently has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $444.50.

Deere & Company Profile

Deere & Co engages in the manufacture and distribution of equipment used in agriculture, construction, forestry, and turf care. It operates through the following segments: Agriculture and Turf, Construction and Forestry, and Financial Services. The Agriculture and Turf segment focuses on the distribution and manufacture of a full line of agriculture and turf equipment and related service parts.