Deere & Company $DE Shares Acquired by Willis Investment Counsel

Willis Investment Counsel increased its holdings in shares of Deere & Company (NYSE:DE) by 13.6% in the second quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the SEC. The institutional investor owned 34,200 shares of the industrial products company’s stock after purchasing an additional 4,100 shares during the quarter. Willis Investment Counsel’s holdings in Deere & Company were worth $17,390,000 as of its most recent filing with the SEC.

Several other hedge funds have also recently bought and sold shares of the business. Brighton Jones LLC lifted its holdings in shares of Deere & Company by 39.1% during the 4th quarter. Brighton Jones LLC now owns 4,548 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $1,927,000 after acquiring an additional 1,278 shares in the last quarter. SYM FINANCIAL Corp increased its holdings in Deere & Company by 4.4% in the 1st quarter. SYM FINANCIAL Corp now owns 781 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $367,000 after purchasing an additional 33 shares in the last quarter. Venturi Wealth Management LLC raised its position in Deere & Company by 101.5% in the first quarter. Venturi Wealth Management LLC now owns 1,475 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $692,000 after purchasing an additional 743 shares during the period. IMA Advisory Services Inc. acquired a new position in shares of Deere & Company during the first quarter worth about $164,000. Finally, AE Wealth Management LLC boosted its position in shares of Deere & Company by 36.7% in the first quarter. AE Wealth Management LLC now owns 7,573 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $3,555,000 after buying an additional 2,032 shares during the period. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 68.58% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several equities research analysts recently commented on the company. Jefferies Financial Group dropped their target price on Deere & Company from $510.00 to $440.00 and set a “hold” rating on the stock in a report on Wednesday, October 8th. Weiss Ratings reiterated a “hold (c+)” rating on shares of Deere & Company in a research note on Monday. Zacks Research downgraded shares of Deere & Company from a “hold” rating to a “strong sell” rating in a research note on Monday, October 20th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. lowered their price target on shares of Deere & Company from $495.00 to $480.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a report on Tuesday, October 14th. Finally, Wolfe Research cut their price objective on shares of Deere & Company from $550.00 to $520.00 and set an “outperform” rating on the stock in a report on Friday, October 3rd. One research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, thirteen have assigned a Buy rating, ten have given a Hold rating and one has given a Sell rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $519.85.

Deere & Company Stock Performance

Shares of Deere & Company stock opened at $476.84 on Friday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.76, a quick ratio of 1.98 and a current ratio of 2.19. Deere & Company has a 1 year low of $403.01 and a 1 year high of $533.78. The firm’s 50-day simple moving average is $465.99 and its 200-day simple moving average is $490.78. The firm has a market cap of $128.90 billion, a PE ratio of 24.93, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 3.05 and a beta of 1.04.

Deere & Company Dividend Announcement

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, November 10th. Stockholders of record on Tuesday, September 30th were issued a $1.62 dividend. This represents a $6.48 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.4%. The ex-dividend date was Tuesday, September 30th. Deere & Company’s payout ratio is 33.87%.

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.