Deere & Company $DE Shares Sold by Dai ichi Life Insurance Company Ltd

Dai ichi Life Insurance Company Ltd lessened its holdings in Deere & Company (NYSE:DE) by 14.7% during the 1st quarter, Holdings Channel reports. The firm owned 9,947 shares of the industrial products company’s stock after selling 1,720 shares during the quarter. Dai ichi Life Insurance Company Ltd’s holdings in Deere & Company were worth $5,603,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other large investors have also modified their holdings of the company. Portus Wealth Advisors LLC acquired a new position in shares of Deere & Company in the first quarter worth $32,000. Key Capital Management INC acquired a new stake in shares of Deere & Company during the fourth quarter valued at $27,000. Timmons Wealth Management LLC acquired a new position in Deere & Company in the 4th quarter valued at about $29,000. McIlrath & Eck LLC acquired a new position in Deere & Company in the 4th quarter valued at about $30,000. Finally, Wealth Watch Advisors INC purchased a new position in Deere & Company in the 3rd quarter valued at about $32,000. 68.58% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Deere & Company Stock Up 3.0%

Shares of NYSE:DE opened at $628.32 on Friday. The company has a current ratio of 2.18, a quick ratio of 1.95 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.54. The firm has a market cap of $169.61 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 35.60, a PEG ratio of 2.65 and a beta of 0.89. The stock’s 50-day moving average price is $585.05 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $576.08. Deere & Company has a 12-month low of $433.00 and a 12-month high of $674.19.

Deere & Company (NYSE:DE) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, May 21st. The industrial products company reported $6.55 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $5.70 by $0.85. The company had revenue of $13.37 billion during 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 quarterly revenue was up 5.4% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the prior year, the company posted $6.64 EPS. On average, research analysts forecast that Deere & Company will post 18.28 EPS for the current year.

Deere & Company Dividend Announcement

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, August 10th. Investors 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 1.0%. The ex-dividend date is Tuesday, June 30th. Deere & Company’s payout ratio is presently 36.71%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several research firms have issued reports on DE. Raymond James Financial decreased their price target on shares of Deere & Company from $765.00 to $700.00 and set an “outperform” rating on the stock in a research note on Friday, May 22nd. Royal Bank Of Canada reissued an “outperform” rating and issued a $752.00 price objective on shares of Deere & Company in a research report on Monday, June 1st. Citigroup upped their price objective on shares of Deere & Company from $575.00 to $610.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research note on Tuesday, July 14th. DA Davidson restated a “buy” rating and set a $685.00 target price on shares of Deere & Company in a research report on Friday, July 17th. Finally, Wolfe Research lifted their target price on shares of Deere & Company from $550.00 to $660.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research note on Tuesday, March 31st. Fourteen investment analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and nine have assigned a Hold rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $642.98.

Deere & 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.