Balefire LLC Lowers Stake in Deere & Company (NYSE:DE)

Balefire LLC decreased its holdings in Deere & Company (NYSE:DE) by 0.9% during the first quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund owned 13,711 shares of the industrial products company’s stock after selling 126 shares during the quarter. Deere & Company accounts for about 2.2% of Balefire LLC’s investment portfolio, making the stock its 6th largest position. Balefire LLC’s holdings in Deere & Company were worth $6,435,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other large investors also recently added to or reduced their stakes in DE. Norges Bank purchased a new position in shares of Deere & Company during the 4th quarter valued at about $1,244,094,000. GAMMA Investing LLC increased its holdings in Deere & Company by 61,215.9% in the 1st quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC now owns 1,753,022 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $822,781,000 after acquiring an additional 1,750,163 shares in the last quarter. Castlekeep Investment Advisors LLC bought a new stake in Deere & Company during the 4th quarter worth approximately $541,437,000. Price T Rowe Associates Inc. MD raised its stake in Deere & Company by 19.9% during the 4th quarter. Price T Rowe Associates Inc. MD now owns 6,589,760 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $2,792,082,000 after acquiring an additional 1,095,736 shares during the period. Finally, FMR LLC lifted its holdings in Deere & Company by 22.9% during the fourth quarter. FMR LLC now owns 5,581,408 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $2,364,843,000 after purchasing an additional 1,039,395 shares in the last quarter. 68.58% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Deere & Company Stock Down 1.4%

NYSE DE opened at $506.87 on Thursday. The stock has a 50 day moving average price of $498.19 and a 200-day moving average price of $471.85. Deere & Company has a one year low of $340.20 and a one year high of $533.78. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.76, a quick ratio of 1.89 and a current ratio of 2.11. The company has a market capitalization of $137.28 billion, a P/E ratio of 24.52, a P/E/G ratio of 3.26 and a beta of 1.09.

Deere & Company (NYSE:DE) last released its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, May 15th. The industrial products company reported $6.64 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $5.72 by $0.92. Deere & Company had a net margin of 12.40% and a return on equity of 24.39%. The company had revenue of $11.17 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $10.80 billion. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm earned $8.53 earnings per share. Deere & Company’s revenue was down 17.9% on a year-over-year basis. As a group, equities analysts predict that Deere & Company will post 19.32 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Deere & Company Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, August 8th. Stockholders of record on Monday, June 30th will be issued a $1.62 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Monday, June 30th. This represents a $6.48 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.28%. Deere & Company’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 31.35%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of brokerages have recently issued reports on DE. The Goldman Sachs Group reissued a “buy” rating on shares of Deere & Company in a research note on Thursday, May 15th. Robert W. Baird boosted their price objective on Deere & Company from $501.00 to $514.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research report on Friday, May 16th. Evercore ISI upped their price objective on Deere & Company from $455.00 to $493.00 and gave the stock an “in-line” rating in a research note on Monday, May 19th. Barclays increased their target price on Deere & Company from $475.00 to $530.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research report on Friday, May 16th. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. boosted their price target on Deere & Company from $490.00 to $540.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a report on Friday, May 16th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, twelve have issued a hold rating, eight have given a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, Deere & Company has an average rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $515.19.

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.