Deere & Company (NYSE:DE) Shares Acquired by Meeder Asset Management Inc.

Meeder Asset Management Inc. raised its position in Deere & Company (NYSE:DE) by 211.9% during the fourth quarter, Holdings Channel reports. The firm owned 131 shares of the industrial products company’s stock after buying an additional 89 shares during the quarter. Meeder Asset Management Inc.’s holdings in Deere & Company were worth $56,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other large investors also recently added to or reduced their stakes in DE. Everence Capital Management Inc. grew its stake in shares of Deere & Company by 148.3% in the fourth quarter. Everence Capital Management Inc. now owns 12,223 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $5,179,000 after acquiring an additional 7,300 shares in the last quarter. Compass Financial Services Inc purchased a new position in Deere & Company in the fourth quarter valued at $254,000. Toronto Dominion Bank boosted its holdings in Deere & Company by 1.5% in the third quarter. Toronto Dominion Bank now owns 86,952 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $36,288,000 after purchasing an additional 1,291 shares during the period. Czech National Bank grew its stake in Deere & Company by 5.7% during the 4th 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. Finally, Hotchkis & Wiley Capital Management LLC acquired a new stake in Deere & Company in the 3rd quarter valued at about $86,337,000. 68.58% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Deere & Company Stock Performance

Shares of DE opened at $478.42 on Wednesday. The stock has a market capitalization of $129.85 billion, a P/E ratio of 21.21, a P/E/G ratio of 2.14 and a beta of 1.01. The company’s fifty day moving average is $477.87 and its two-hundred day moving average is $441.29. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.94, a quick ratio of 1.98 and a current ratio of 2.22. Deere & Company has a 1 year low of $340.20 and a 1 year high of $515.05.

Deere & Company (NYSE:DE) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, February 13th. The industrial products company reported $3.19 EPS for the quarter, beating 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%. On average, sell-side analysts predict that Deere & Company will post 19.32 earnings per share for the current year.

Deere & Company Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, May 8th. Investors of record on Monday, March 31st will be paid a $1.62 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, March 31st. This represents a $6.48 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.35%. Deere & Company’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 28.72%.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other Deere & Company news, insider Rajesh Kalathur sold 24,580 shares of the business’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 sale, the insider now directly owns 74,878 shares in the company, valued at approximately $37,484,675.58. The trade was a 24.71 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through the SEC website. 0.29% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

DE has been the subject of a number of analyst reports. JPMorgan Chase & Co. boosted their price objective on Deere & Company from $470.00 to $500.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research report on Monday, February 10th. Argus set a $510.00 price objective on Deere & Company in a report on Friday, March 7th. Jefferies Financial Group cut 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. Evercore ISI boosted their price target on shares of Deere & Company from $437.00 to $455.00 and gave the company an “in-line” rating in a research report on Wednesday, February 19th. Finally, Baird R W lowered Deere & Company from a “strong-buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Monday, March 3rd. Fourteen research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and eight have issued a buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company currently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $460.00.

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.