Deere & Company (NYSE:DE) Stake Cut by Moloney Securities Asset Management LLC

Moloney Securities Asset Management LLC cut its position in shares of Deere & Company (NYSE:DE) by 8.1% during the 1st quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund owned 1,599 shares of the industrial products company’s stock after selling 141 shares during the quarter. Moloney Securities Asset Management LLC’s holdings in Deere & Company were worth $751,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other large investors have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Cornerstone Planning Group LLC lifted its stake in Deere & Company by 116.1% during the first quarter. Cornerstone Planning Group LLC now owns 67 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $31,000 after purchasing an additional 36 shares during the last quarter. Orion Capital Management LLC acquired a new stake in Deere & Company in the fourth quarter worth $34,000. Mascagni Wealth Management Inc. acquired a new stake in Deere & Company in the fourth quarter worth $39,000. Dogwood Wealth Management LLC acquired a new stake in Deere & Company in the fourth quarter worth $42,000. Finally, Wood Tarver Financial Group LLC acquired a new stake in Deere & Company in the fourth quarter worth $43,000. 68.58% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several brokerages have weighed in on DE. Wall Street Zen lowered Deere & Company from a “hold” rating to a “sell” rating in a research report on Friday, May 30th. BMO Capital Markets reaffirmed a “market perform” rating and issued a $460.00 target price (up from $425.00) on shares of Deere & Company in a research report on Wednesday, May 21st. JPMorgan Chase & Co. increased their target price on Deere & Company from $490.00 to $540.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research report on Friday, May 16th. Evercore ISI increased their target price on Deere & Company from $455.00 to $493.00 and gave the stock an “in-line” rating in a research report on Monday, May 19th. Finally, The Goldman Sachs Group reaffirmed a “buy” rating on shares of Deere & Company in a research report on Thursday, May 15th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, twelve have given a hold rating, eight have assigned a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock currently has an average rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $515.19.

Deere & Company Trading Up 0.3%

Shares of DE stock opened at $510.35 on Thursday. The stock has a 50-day simple moving average of $509.35 and a 200 day simple moving average of $476.92. Deere & Company has a fifty-two week low of $340.20 and a fifty-two week high of $533.78. The stock has a market capitalization of $138.22 billion, a P/E ratio of 24.69, a P/E/G ratio of 3.23 and a beta of 1.08. The company has a quick ratio of 1.89, a current ratio of 2.11 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.76.

Deere & Company (NYSE:DE) last announced its earnings results on Thursday, May 15th. The industrial products company reported $6.64 earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $5.72 by $0.92. Deere & Company had a return on equity of 24.39% and a net margin of 12.40%. The business had revenue of $11.17 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $10.80 billion. During the same quarter last year, the business posted $8.53 earnings per share. The company’s quarterly revenue was down 17.9% on a year-over-year basis. On average, sell-side analysts expect that Deere & Company will post 19.32 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Deere & Company Dividend Announcement

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, August 8th. Investors of record on Monday, June 30th will be paid a dividend of $1.62 per share. The ex-dividend date is Monday, June 30th. This represents a $6.48 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.27%. Deere & Company’s dividend payout ratio is currently 31.35%.

Deere & Company 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.