Deseret Mutual Benefit Administrators Raises Stock Holdings in Deere & Company (NYSE:DE)

Deseret Mutual Benefit Administrators boosted its holdings in shares of Deere & Company (NYSE:DE) by 8.2% during the 4th quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The fund owned 342 shares of the industrial products company’s stock after purchasing an additional 26 shares during the quarter. Deseret Mutual Benefit Administrators’ holdings in Deere & Company were worth $145,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other institutional investors also recently made changes to their positions in the company. Pineridge Advisors LLC grew its position in shares of Deere & Company by 60.5% during the fourth quarter. Pineridge Advisors LLC now owns 69 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $29,000 after buying an additional 26 shares in the last quarter. Modus Advisors LLC bought a new position in Deere & Company during the 4th quarter valued at $32,000. YANKCOM Partnership acquired a new position in Deere & Company during the 4th quarter worth $34,000. Synergy Asset Management LLC bought a new stake in shares of Deere & Company in the 4th quarter worth about $35,000. Finally, Continuum Advisory LLC raised its stake in shares of Deere & Company by 155.8% in the 3rd quarter. Continuum Advisory LLC now owns 110 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $43,000 after purchasing an additional 67 shares in the last quarter. 68.58% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other Deere & Company news, insider Rajesh Kalathur sold 24,580 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated 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 transaction, the insider now owns 74,878 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $37,484,675.58. This trade represents a 24.71 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this hyperlink. Corporate insiders own 0.29% of the company’s stock.

Deere & Company Price Performance

Shares of NYSE:DE opened at $489.98 on Friday. The firm’s 50 day moving average is $452.07 and its two-hundred day moving average is $420.91. The firm has a market capitalization of $133.45 billion, a P/E ratio of 21.72, a PEG ratio of 2.20 and a beta of 0.98. The company has a current ratio of 2.22, a quick ratio of 1.98 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.94. Deere & Company has a 52 week low of $340.20 and a 52 week high of $515.05.

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

Deere & Company Increases Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, February 10th. Investors of record on Tuesday, December 31st were paid a dividend of $1.62 per share. This is a boost from Deere & Company’s previous quarterly dividend of $1.47. This represents a $6.48 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.32%. The ex-dividend date was Tuesday, December 31st. Deere & Company’s payout ratio is currently 28.72%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of research firms recently commented on DE. StockNews.com downgraded Deere & Company from a “hold” rating to a “sell” rating in a research note on Thursday. Morgan Stanley lifted their target price on Deere & Company from $401.00 to $450.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research report on Monday, November 25th. UBS Group boosted their price target on Deere & Company from $404.00 to $462.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a report on Friday, November 22nd. Jefferies Financial Group cut Deere & Company from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating and set a $510.00 price objective on the stock. in a research note on Friday, December 6th. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. boosted their target price on shares of Deere & Company from $470.00 to $500.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research note on Monday, February 10th. One analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, eleven have assigned a hold rating and eight have issued a buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock currently has an average rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $454.65.

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.