KBC Group NV Sells 5,525 Shares of Deere & Company (NYSE:DE)

KBC Group NV decreased its stake in Deere & Company (NYSE:DE) by 5.4% during the 4th quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm owned 96,269 shares of the industrial products company’s stock after selling 5,525 shares during the quarter. KBC Group NV’s holdings in Deere & Company were worth $40,789,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission.

Other hedge funds have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. DLK Investment Management LLC raised its position in shares of Deere & Company by 0.3% in the 4th quarter. DLK Investment Management LLC now owns 8,212 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $3,479,000 after acquiring an additional 24 shares during the period. Mattern Wealth Management LLC raised its holdings in Deere & Company by 1.3% in the third quarter. Mattern Wealth Management LLC now owns 1,884 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $786,000 after purchasing an additional 25 shares during the period. Carret Asset Management LLC boosted its position in shares of Deere & Company by 0.3% during the third quarter. Carret Asset Management LLC now owns 8,148 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $3,401,000 after purchasing an additional 25 shares in the last quarter. Round Rock Advisors LLC grew its holdings in shares of Deere & Company by 2.0% in the 3rd quarter. Round Rock Advisors LLC now owns 1,252 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $522,000 after buying an additional 25 shares during the period. Finally, Douglas Lane & Associates LLC increased its position in shares of Deere & Company by 4.7% in the 4th quarter. Douglas Lane & Associates LLC now owns 557 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $236,000 after buying an additional 25 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 68.58% of the company’s stock.

Deere & Company Stock Performance

DE opened at $484.08 on Tuesday. The business’s 50-day simple moving average is $438.55 and its 200 day simple moving average is $406.44. Deere & Company has a 52-week low of $340.20 and a 52-week high of $484.39. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.89, a quick ratio of 1.90 and a current ratio of 2.09. The firm has a market capitalization of $131.84 billion, a PE ratio of 18.91, a PEG ratio of 2.84 and a beta of 0.98.

Deere & Company (NYSE:DE) last announced its quarterly earnings data 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 company had revenue of $9.28 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $9.20 billion. Deere & Company had a return on equity of 31.32% and a net margin of 13.73%. The business’s revenue was down 32.8% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the prior year, the business posted $8.26 EPS. As a group, sell-side analysts expect that Deere & Company will post 19.34 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Deere & Company Increases Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, February 10th. Shareholders of record on Tuesday, December 31st will be paid a $1.62 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Tuesday, December 31st. This represents a $6.48 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.34%. This is a boost from Deere & Company’s previous quarterly dividend of $1.47. Deere & Company’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 25.31%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several research analysts have weighed in on DE shares. Oppenheimer lifted their target price on Deere & Company from $448.00 to $477.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a report on Friday, November 22nd. JPMorgan Chase & Co. boosted their price objective on Deere & Company from $450.00 to $470.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research report on Wednesday, January 15th. Citigroup dropped their target price on shares of Deere & Company from $470.00 to $430.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a report on Tuesday, January 14th. Barclays lifted their price target on shares of Deere & Company from $400.00 to $475.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research note on Friday, November 22nd. Finally, Jefferies Financial Group lowered shares of Deere & Company from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating and set a $510.00 price objective on the stock. in a report on Friday, December 6th. Eleven equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and nine have issued a buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, Deere & Company currently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $442.83.

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.