Millstone Evans Group LLC Takes Position in Deere & Company (NYSE:DE)

Millstone Evans Group LLC acquired a new stake in Deere & Company (NYSE:DE) in the 4th quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm acquired 739 shares of the industrial products company’s stock, valued at approximately $313,000.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds have also made changes to their positions in the stock. Wellington Management Group LLP lifted its stake in Deere & Company by 32.0% during the third quarter. Wellington Management Group LLP now owns 7,352,465 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $3,068,404,000 after purchasing an additional 1,782,984 shares during the last quarter. FMR LLC lifted its stake in Deere & Company by 27.8% during the third quarter. FMR LLC now owns 4,542,013 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $1,895,518,000 after purchasing an additional 988,380 shares during the last quarter. Raymond James Financial Inc. acquired a new stake in Deere & Company during the fourth quarter valued at approximately $296,232,000. Stockbridge Partners LLC lifted its stake in Deere & Company by 157.5% during the third quarter. Stockbridge Partners LLC now owns 884,237 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $369,019,000 after purchasing an additional 540,874 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Proficio Capital Partners LLC lifted its stake in Deere & Company by 52,200.3% during the fourth quarter. Proficio Capital Partners LLC now owns 530,848 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $224,920,000 after purchasing an additional 529,833 shares during the last quarter. 68.58% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several analysts recently commented on the stock. Evercore ISI increased their target price on shares of Deere & Company from $437.00 to $455.00 and gave the company an “in-line” rating in a research note on Wednesday, February 19th. Barclays upped their price target on shares of Deere & Company from $400.00 to $475.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research report on Friday, November 22nd. Jefferies Financial Group downgraded shares of Deere & Company from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating and set a $510.00 price target for the company. in a research report on Friday, December 6th. Morgan Stanley upped their price target on shares of Deere & Company from $401.00 to $450.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research report on Monday, November 25th. Finally, Baird R W downgraded shares of Deere & Company from a “strong-buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Monday, March 3rd. One research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, thirteen have assigned a hold rating and eight have issued a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $460.00.

Insider Transactions at Deere & Company

In related news, insider Rajesh Kalathur sold 24,580 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, February 18th. The shares were sold at an average price of $500.61, for a total value of $12,304,993.80. Following the sale, the insider now owns 74,878 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $37,484,675.58. The trade was a 24.71 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available through this hyperlink. Insiders own 0.29% of the company’s stock.

Deere & Company Stock Performance

NYSE:DE opened at $471.90 on Friday. The firm’s 50-day moving average is $473.25 and its 200-day moving average is $436.21. Deere & Company has a 52-week low of $340.20 and a 52-week high of $515.05. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.94, a quick ratio of 1.98 and a current ratio of 2.22. The company has a market cap of $128.08 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 20.92, a PEG ratio of 2.14 and a beta of 1.01.

Deere & Company (NYSE:DE) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, February 13th. The industrial products company reported $3.19 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate 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 anticipate that Deere & Company will post 19.32 earnings per share for the current year.

Deere & Company Announces Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, May 8th. Stockholders of record on Monday, March 31st will be issued a dividend of $1.62 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, March 31st. This represents a $6.48 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.37%. Deere & Company’s payout ratio is 28.72%.

Deere & Company 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.