Deere & Company (NYSE:DE) Sets New 12-Month High Following Earnings Beat

Deere & Company (NYSE:DE)’s stock price hit a new 52-week high on Friday following a stronger than expected earnings report. The stock traded as high as $531.54 and last traded at $516.85, with a volume of 3211555 shares trading hands. The stock had previously closed at $497.50.

The industrial products company reported $6.64 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $5.72 by $0.92. Deere & Company had a net margin of 12.94% and a return on equity of 27.31%. The business had revenue of $11.17 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $10.80 billion.

Deere & Company Announces Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, May 8th. Investors of record on Monday, March 31st were given a $1.62 dividend. This represents a $6.48 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.22%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Monday, March 31st. Deere & Company’s dividend payout ratio is currently 28.72%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

DE has been the topic of several research reports. Argus set a $510.00 price objective on shares of Deere & Company in a research report on Friday, March 7th. Morgan Stanley boosted their price objective on shares of Deere & Company from $450.00 to $500.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research report on Wednesday, April 16th. Citigroup cut their price objective on shares of Deere & Company from $480.00 to $450.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a research report on Tuesday, April 8th. Evercore ISI boosted their price objective 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, Barclays boosted their price objective on shares of Deere & Company from $475.00 to $530.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research report on Friday. Thirteen analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and six have issued a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, Deere & Company has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $504.38.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other news, insider Rajesh Kalathur sold 24,580 shares of the business’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 directly owns 74,878 shares in the company, valued at $37,484,675.58. The trade was a 24.71% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this link. Insiders own 0.29% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Several institutional investors have recently modified their holdings of the company. Woodline Partners LP increased its stake in shares of Deere & Company by 40.0% during the 1st quarter. Woodline Partners LP now owns 21,399 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $10,044,000 after purchasing an additional 6,118 shares during the last quarter. Zurich Insurance Group Ltd FI acquired a new position in shares of Deere & Company during the 1st quarter worth about $101,526,000. MBB Public Markets I LLC acquired a new position in shares of Deere & Company during the 1st quarter worth about $312,000. Ascent Group LLC increased its stake in shares of Deere & Company by 57.3% during the 1st quarter. Ascent Group LLC now owns 2,168 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $1,018,000 after purchasing an additional 790 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Vancity Investment Management Ltd acquired a new position in shares of Deere & Company during the 1st quarter worth about $758,000. 68.58% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Deere & Company Stock Up 3.0%

The company has a market capitalization of $144.34 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 23.57, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.14 and a beta of 1.08. The firm’s 50 day moving average price is $468.29 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $454.67. The company has a current ratio of 2.22, a quick ratio of 1.98 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.94.

About Deere & Company

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.