Knights of Columbus Asset Advisors LLC Cuts Holdings in Deere & Company (NYSE:DE)

Knights of Columbus Asset Advisors LLC decreased its position in Deere & Company (NYSE:DE) by 48.8% in the fourth quarter, Holdings Channel reports. The institutional investor owned 4,501 shares of the industrial products company’s stock after selling 4,284 shares during the period. Knights of Columbus Asset Advisors LLC’s holdings in Deere & Company were worth $1,800,000 as of its most recent filing with the SEC.

A number of other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Andrew Hill Investment Advisors Inc. purchased a new position in Deere & Company in the fourth quarter valued at $2,403,000. HTLF Bank acquired a new stake in shares of Deere & Company in the fourth quarter valued at about $617,000. Sterling Financial Planning Inc. grew its position in shares of Deere & Company by 9.0% in the fourth quarter. Sterling Financial Planning Inc. now owns 1,805 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $722,000 after purchasing an additional 149 shares during the period. Fidelis Capital Partners LLC grew its position in shares of Deere & Company by 30.8% in the fourth quarter. Fidelis Capital Partners LLC now owns 2,436 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $974,000 after purchasing an additional 573 shares during the period. Finally, Western Wealth Management LLC grew its position in shares of Deere & Company by 7.9% in the fourth quarter. Western Wealth Management LLC now owns 870 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $348,000 after purchasing an additional 64 shares during the period. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 68.58% of the company’s stock.

Deere & Company Stock Performance

Deere & Company stock opened at $400.32 on Friday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.81, a current ratio of 2.05 and a quick ratio of 1.81. The stock has a market cap of $111.43 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 11.66, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.50 and a beta of 1.04. The firm has a 50 day simple moving average of $385.86 and a 200-day simple moving average of $383.05. Deere & Company has a 1-year low of $345.55 and a 1-year high of $450.00.

Deere & Company (NYSE:DE) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, February 15th. The industrial products company reported $6.23 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $5.19 by $1.04. The firm had revenue of $10.49 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $10.30 billion. Deere & Company had a net margin of 16.38% and a return on equity of 44.60%. The firm’s quarterly revenue was down 8.0% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter last year, the company posted $6.55 EPS. On average, analysts expect that Deere & Company will post 27.4 EPS for the current year.

Deere & Company Dividend Announcement

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, May 8th. Investors of record on Friday, March 29th will be given a dividend of $1.47 per share. The ex-dividend date is Wednesday, March 27th. This represents a $5.88 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.47%. Deere & Company’s payout ratio is currently 17.12%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

DE has been the topic of several research analyst reports. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft dropped their target price on shares of Deere & Company from $425.00 to $401.00 and set a “hold” rating on the stock in a research report on Friday, February 16th. Melius Research restated a “hold” rating on shares of Deere & Company in a research report on Monday, January 8th. Morgan Stanley began coverage on shares of Deere & Company in a research report on Monday, January 8th. They set an “overweight” rating and a $430.00 price target on the stock. Wells Fargo & Company lowered their price target on shares of Deere & Company from $445.00 to $425.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a research report on Friday, February 16th. Finally, Stifel Nicolaus lowered their price target on shares of Deere & Company from $435.00 to $425.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a research report on Friday, February 16th. Ten equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and nine have given a buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, the stock currently has an average rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $433.28.

About Deere & Company

Deere & Company engages in the manufacture and distribution of various equipment worldwide. The company operates through four segments: Production and Precision Agriculture, Small Agriculture and Turf, Construction and Forestry, and Financial Services. The Production and Precision Agriculture segment provides large and medium tractors, combines, cotton pickers and strippers, sugarcane harvesters and loaders, harvesting front-end equipment, pull-behind scrapers, and tillage and seeding equipment, as well as application equipment, including sprayers and nutrient management, and soil preparation machinery for grain growers.