Mediolanum International Funds Ltd Trims Stake in Deere & Company $DE

Mediolanum International Funds Ltd cut its position in Deere & Company (NYSE:DE) by 12.5% in the first quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm owned 10,016 shares of the industrial products company’s stock after selling 1,432 shares during the quarter. Mediolanum International Funds Ltd’s holdings in Deere & Company were worth $5,564,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other hedge funds have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Norges Bank acquired a new position in Deere & Company during the fourth quarter worth approximately $1,715,633,000. Capital World Investors boosted its holdings in shares of 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. grew its position in shares of 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 worth $932,870,000 after acquiring an additional 1,893,972 shares during the last quarter. M&T Bank Corp grew its position in shares of Deere & Company by 1,199.8% during 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 acquiring an additional 1,721,239 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Diamant Asset Management Inc. increased its holdings in shares of Deere & Company by 56,230.0% in the 1st quarter. Diamant Asset Management Inc. now owns 610,617 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $343,961,000 after acquiring an additional 609,533 shares during the period. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 68.58% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several analysts recently commented on DE shares. Wall Street Zen upgraded shares of Deere & Company from a “sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Sunday, July 5th. Bank of America lowered their price objective on shares of Deere & Company from $672.00 to $607.50 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a research report on Friday, May 22nd. DA Davidson reaffirmed a “buy” rating and issued a $685.00 target price on shares of Deere & Company in a report on Friday. Citigroup increased their target price on shares of Deere & Company from $575.00 to $610.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research note on Tuesday, July 14th. Finally, Raymond James Financial lowered their price target on Deere & Company from $765.00 to $700.00 and set an “outperform” rating on the stock in a report on Friday, May 22nd. Fourteen equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and nine have issued a Hold rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, Deere & Company currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $642.98.

Deere & Company Stock Down 1.9%

Shares of Deere & Company stock opened at $586.13 on Tuesday. Deere & Company has a one year low of $433.00 and a one year high of $674.19. The company has a market cap of $158.22 billion, a P/E ratio of 33.21, a PEG ratio of 2.21 and a beta of 0.89. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.54, a quick ratio of 1.95 and a current ratio of 2.18. The firm has a fifty day moving average of $582.50 and a two-hundred day moving average of $572.84.

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

Deere & Company Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, August 10th. Shareholders of record on Tuesday, June 30th will be issued a $1.62 dividend. This represents a $6.48 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.1%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Tuesday, June 30th. Deere & Company’s payout ratio is currently 36.71%.

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.