Fisher Funds Management LTD Raises Position in Deere & Company (NYSE:DE)

Fisher Funds Management LTD boosted its stake in shares of Deere & Company (NYSE:DE) by 8.4% in the first quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 40,956 shares of the industrial products company’s stock after buying an additional 3,157 shares during the period. Fisher Funds Management LTD’s holdings in Deere & Company were worth $19,223,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other large investors have also recently modified their holdings of the stock. Sunbelt Securities Inc. increased its position in shares of Deere & Company by 2.4% during the 1st quarter. Sunbelt Securities Inc. now owns 925 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $434,000 after purchasing an additional 22 shares during the last quarter. First Bancorp Inc ME boosted its position in shares of Deere & Company by 4.7% during the first quarter. First Bancorp Inc ME now owns 509 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $239,000 after acquiring an additional 23 shares during the last quarter. World Equity Group Inc. grew its position in shares of Deere & Company by 4.5% during the first quarter. World Equity Group Inc. now owns 552 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $244,000 after purchasing an additional 24 shares in the last quarter. Coppell Advisory Solutions LLC increased its stake in Deere & Company by 2.5% in the 4th quarter. Coppell Advisory Solutions LLC now owns 1,011 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $432,000 after acquiring an additional 25 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Glen Eagle Advisors LLC raised its stake in Deere & Company by 0.9% during the fourth quarter. Glen Eagle Advisors LLC now owns 2,936 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $1,244,000 after purchasing an additional 25 shares in the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 68.58% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of research analysts have weighed in on the stock. The Goldman Sachs Group reiterated a “buy” rating on shares of Deere & Company in a research report on Thursday, May 15th. UBS Group lowered their price objective on shares of Deere & Company from $462.00 to $440.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a research note on Monday, April 7th. Bank of America lifted their price target on Deere & Company from $495.00 to $556.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a report on Friday, May 16th. Argus set a $510.00 price target on Deere & Company in a research note on Friday, March 7th. Finally, Morgan Stanley raised their target price on Deere & Company from $450.00 to $500.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research note on Wednesday, April 16th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, twelve have issued a hold rating, eight have assigned a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat, Deere & Company has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $515.19.

Deere & Company Stock Performance

Shares of NYSE:DE opened at $517.50 on Friday. The business has a 50-day moving average of $505.29 and a two-hundred day moving average of $474.73. The firm has a market capitalization of $140.15 billion, a PE ratio of 25.04, a P/E/G ratio of 3.30 and a beta of 1.08. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.76, a current ratio of 2.11 and a quick ratio of 1.89. Deere & Company has a 12 month low of $340.20 and a 12 month high of $533.78.

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

Deere & Company Announces Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, August 8th. Investors of record on Monday, June 30th will be given a dividend of $1.62 per share. The ex-dividend date is Monday, June 30th. This represents a $6.48 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.25%. Deere & Company’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 31.35%.

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.