Capital World Investors Buys 157,224 Shares of Deere & Company (NYSE:DE)

Capital World Investors boosted its position in shares of Deere & Company (NYSE:DE) by 2.7% during the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm owned 6,058,259 shares of the industrial products company’s stock after acquiring an additional 157,224 shares during the period. Capital World Investors owned 2.22% of Deere & Company worth $2,566,884,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other large investors have also added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Everence Capital Management Inc. increased its stake in Deere & Company by 148.3% in the 4th quarter. Everence Capital Management Inc. now owns 12,223 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $5,179,000 after buying an additional 7,300 shares in the last quarter. Compass Financial Services Inc purchased a new stake in Deere & Company during the 4th quarter valued at approximately $254,000. Czech National Bank raised its position 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 valued at $23,376,000 after buying an additional 2,964 shares during the last quarter. Banque Pictet & Cie SA lifted its holdings in shares of Deere & Company by 2.0% in the fourth quarter. Banque Pictet & Cie SA now owns 78,274 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $33,165,000 after buying an additional 1,500 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Spectrum Financial Alliance Ltd LLC boosted its position in shares of Deere & Company by 2.9% during the fourth quarter. Spectrum Financial Alliance Ltd LLC now owns 49,613 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $21,021,000 after acquiring an additional 1,407 shares during the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 68.58% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of equities analysts recently commented on the company. JPMorgan Chase & Co. increased their price target on Deere & Company from $470.00 to $500.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research note on Monday, February 10th. Evercore ISI increased their price target on shares of Deere & Company from $437.00 to $455.00 and gave the company an “in-line” rating in a report on Wednesday, February 19th. UBS Group decreased their price objective on Deere & Company from $462.00 to $440.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a research report on Monday, April 7th. Argus set a $510.00 price objective on shares of Deere & Company in a research note on Friday, March 7th. Finally, StockNews.com lowered shares of Deere & Company from a “hold” rating to a “sell” rating in a report on Sunday, April 6th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, thirteen have issued a hold rating and eight have given a buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, the company has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $459.89.

Deere & Company Stock Performance

Shares of DE opened at $452.06 on Friday. Deere & Company has a 12 month low of $340.20 and a 12 month high of $515.05. The stock has a fifty day moving average price of $469.77 and a 200-day moving average price of $444.52. The company has a current ratio of 2.22, a quick ratio of 1.98 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.94. The firm has a market cap of $122.70 billion, a PE ratio of 20.04, a P/E/G ratio of 2.14 and a beta of 1.00.

Deere & Company (NYSE:DE) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, February 13th. The industrial products company reported $3.19 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $3.14 by $0.05. Deere & Company had a net margin of 12.94% and a return on equity of 27.31%. Equities research analysts predict that Deere & Company will post 19.32 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Deere & Company Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, May 8th. Investors of record on Monday, March 31st will be given a dividend of $1.62 per share. The ex-dividend date is Monday, March 31st. This represents a $6.48 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.43%. Deere & Company’s dividend payout ratio is presently 28.72%.

Insider Buying and Selling at Deere & Company

In other news, insider Rajesh Kalathur sold 24,580 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Tuesday, February 18th. The shares were sold at an average price of $500.61, for a total transaction of $12,304,993.80. Following the completion of the sale, the insider now owns 74,878 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $37,484,675.58. This represents a 24.71 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this hyperlink. Company insiders own 0.29% of the company’s stock.

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.