Leonteq Securities AG Trims Stock Position in Deere & Company $DE

Leonteq Securities AG lessened its stake in Deere & Company (NYSE:DE) by 65.1% in the 1st quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm owned 1,020 shares of the industrial products company’s stock after selling 1,905 shares during the quarter. Leonteq Securities AG’s holdings in Deere & Company were worth $575,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other hedge funds have also recently modified their holdings of the company. Norges Bank acquired a new stake in Deere & Company during the fourth quarter worth about $1,715,633,000. Capital World Investors lifted its holdings in Deere & Company by 53.9% in 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 acquiring an additional 3,358,264 shares during the period. Northwestern Mutual Wealth Management Co. boosted its position in Deere & Company by 1,725.8% in the 4th quarter. Northwestern Mutual Wealth Management Co. now owns 2,003,715 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $932,870,000 after purchasing an additional 1,893,972 shares in the last quarter. M&T Bank Corp boosted its position in Deere & Company by 1,199.8% in the 4th 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 in the last quarter. Finally, Diamant Asset Management Inc. grew its stake in shares of Deere & Company by 56,230.0% during the 1st quarter. Diamant Asset Management Inc. now owns 610,617 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $343,961,000 after purchasing an additional 609,533 shares during the period. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 68.58% of the company’s stock.

Deere & Company Price Performance

Deere & Company stock opened at $621.09 on Friday. The company has a fifty day simple moving average of $578.41 and a 200-day simple moving average of $562.69. The firm has a market capitalization of $167.66 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 35.19, a PEG ratio of 2.30 and a beta of 0.89. The company has a quick ratio of 1.95, a current ratio of 2.18 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.54. Deere & Company has a 52-week low of $433.00 and a 52-week high of $674.19.

Deere & Company (NYSE:DE) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, May 21st. The industrial products company reported $6.55 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $5.70 by $0.85. The firm had revenue of $13.37 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $11.55 billion. Deere & Company had a net margin of 10.09% and a return on equity of 18.25%. The company’s revenue for the quarter was up 5.4% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period last year, the firm posted $6.64 earnings per share. On average, equities analysts anticipate that Deere & Company will post 18.13 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Deere & Company Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, August 10th. Shareholders of record on Tuesday, June 30th will be paid a $1.62 dividend. This represents a $6.48 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.0%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Tuesday, June 30th. Deere & Company’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 36.71%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of research analysts have weighed in on DE shares. Wolfe Research upped their price objective on shares of Deere & Company from $550.00 to $660.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research report on Tuesday, March 31st. DA Davidson dropped their target price on Deere & Company from $775.00 to $685.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a research report on Friday, May 22nd. Citigroup cut their price target on Deere & Company from $625.00 to $595.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a research note on Friday, May 22nd. Bank of America reduced their price target on Deere & Company from $672.00 to $607.50 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a report on Friday, May 22nd. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. upped their target price on Deere & Company from $560.00 to $590.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research note on Thursday, June 4th. Fourteen research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and nine have issued a Hold rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $642.23.

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.