Short Interest in Deere & Company (NYSE:DE) Declines By 12.9%

Deere & Company (NYSE:DE) was the recipient of a large drop in short interest during the month of March. As of March 13th, there was short interest totaling 4,346,333 shares, a drop of 12.9% from the February 26th total of 4,991,541 shares. Approximately 1.6% of the shares of the company are sold short. Based on an average trading volume of 1,279,668 shares, the days-to-cover ratio is presently 3.4 days.

Trending Headlines about Deere & Company

Here are the key news stories impacting Deere & Company this week:

• Positive Sentiment: Analyst upgrades — Wolfe Research raised its price target to $660 and kept an “outperform” rating; Barclays lifted its target to $640 and kept an “overweight” rating. These upgrades signal stronger earnings/valuation expectations and likely helped buying interest. Wolfe Research Adjusts PT Barclays Adjusts PT
• Positive Sentiment: Brand & marketing boost — Deere announced a multi-year partnership with Major League Baseball, raising brand visibility across U.S. communities and recreational/municipal channels that could support aftermarket/consumer demand. John Deere Partners with MLB
• Positive Sentiment: Tech investment — Deere opened a Central Texas facility to test new farming technology, underlining continued capex in precision/ag-tech that can drive higher-margin service/software revenue over time. Central Texas Facility
• Positive Sentiment: Industry recognition — Coverage highlights Deere’s role in precision farming and inclusion in investor screens (Russell 1000 attention), which supports longer-term demand narratives. Precision Farming Coverage
• Neutral Sentiment: Market commentary — Deere is a trending stock in retail/institutional scans and analysts debate valuation vs. cyclical outlook; some pieces argue the company is well-positioned but still cyclically sensitive. Zacks Trending Note
• Neutral Sentiment: Short-term price action — Coverage notes the stock rose but still slightly underperformed broader indices recently, reflecting mixed investor views on cyclical recovery timing. MarketWatch Coverage
• Negative Sentiment: Trade/tariff risk — U.S. lawmakers are targeting heavy machinery imported from Mexico; potential tariffs or political pressure on offshoring could raise costs or disrupt supply chains for manufacturers in the sector. Tariff Risk Article
• Negative Sentiment: Input-cost concerns — Analyst/commentary pieces warn that rising fertilizer and input prices could pressure farmer margins and equipment demand, a key downside risk for Deere’s sales cycle. Fertilizer Cost Risk

Deere & Company Trading Up 1.5%

Shares of DE stock opened at $572.02 on Thursday. Deere & Company has a 1 year low of $404.42 and a 1 year high of $674.19. The firm has a fifty day moving average price of $582.44 and a 200-day moving average price of $511.48. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.59, a current ratio of 2.21 and a quick ratio of 1.96. The company has a market cap of $154.51 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 32.24, a PEG ratio of 1.97 and a beta of 0.98.

Deere & Company (NYSE:DE) last announced its earnings results on Thursday, February 19th. The industrial products company reported $2.42 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.90 by $0.52. The company had revenue of $9.61 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $7.50 billion. Deere & Company had a return on equity of 18.93% and a net margin of 10.29%.Deere & Company’s revenue for the quarter was up 17.5% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period last year, the firm earned $3.19 EPS. As a group, equities analysts predict that Deere & Company will post 19.32 earnings per share for the current year.

Deere & Company Announces Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, May 8th. Shareholders of record on Tuesday, March 31st will be given a $1.62 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Tuesday, March 31st. This represents a $6.48 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.1%. Deere & Company’s dividend payout ratio is presently 36.53%.

Insider Transactions at Deere & Company

In other news, insider Cory J. Reed sold 12,000 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, January 14th. The shares were sold at an average price of $510.00, for a total transaction of $6,120,000.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider directly owned 20,792 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $10,603,920. The trade was a 36.59% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at the SEC website. Also, CEO John C. May II sold 41,472 shares of Deere & Company stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, January 8th. The stock was sold at an average price of $501.49, for a total transaction of $20,797,793.28. Following the completion of the sale, the chief executive officer directly owned 117,970 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $59,160,775.30. This trade represents a 26.01% decrease in their position. Additional details regarding this sale are available in the official SEC disclosure. Company insiders own 0.29% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

A number of large investors have recently made changes to their positions in DE. Norges Bank purchased a new stake in Deere & Company in the 4th quarter worth approximately $1,715,633,000. Capital World Investors lifted its holdings in Deere & Company by 53.9% during the fourth quarter. Capital World Investors now owns 9,592,004 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $4,465,906,000 after purchasing an additional 3,358,264 shares in the last quarter. Northwestern Mutual Wealth Management Co. lifted its holdings in Deere & Company by 1,725.8% during the fourth quarter. Northwestern Mutual Wealth Management Co. now owns 2,003,715 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $932,870,000 after purchasing an additional 1,893,972 shares in the last quarter. M&T Bank Corp boosted its position in shares of Deere & Company by 1,199.8% in the fourth quarter. M&T Bank Corp now owns 1,864,701 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $868,149,000 after purchasing an additional 1,721,239 shares during the period. Finally, Marshall Wace LLP boosted its position in shares of Deere & Company by 573.9% in the second quarter. Marshall Wace LLP now owns 842,882 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $428,597,000 after purchasing an additional 717,808 shares during the period. 68.58% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several equities analysts have recently weighed in on the company. Royal Bank Of Canada increased their price target on Deere & Company from $541.00 to $736.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a report on Friday, February 20th. Argus upped their price objective on Deere & Company from $540.00 to $700.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Tuesday, March 3rd. UBS Group increased their target price on Deere & Company from $535.00 to $775.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Friday, February 20th. Wolfe Research raised their target price on Deere & Company from $550.00 to $660.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research report on Tuesday. Finally, Weiss Ratings restated a “hold (c+)” rating on shares of Deere & Company in a research note on Monday, December 29th. Sixteen research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, eight have assigned a Hold rating and one has issued a Sell rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $655.70.

Deere & Company Company Profile

Deere & Company, commonly known by its brand John Deere, is a global manufacturer of agricultural, construction and forestry machinery, as well as turf care equipment and power systems. Founded in 1837 by blacksmith John Deere—who developed a polished steel plow to improve tillage in tough prairie soils—the company is headquartered in Moline, Illinois, and has grown into one of the largest and most recognizable names in equipment manufacturing worldwide.

The company’s principal businesses include a broad portfolio of agricultural equipment such as tractors, combines, planters, sprayers, harvesters and tillage implements, complemented by precision agriculture technologies and telematics that support farm management, yield optimization and equipment connectivity.