Arizona State Retirement System Lowers Stock Position in Deere & Company $DE

Arizona State Retirement System cut its stake in shares of Deere & Company (NYSE:DE) by 4.2% in the 2nd quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund owned 67,454 shares of the industrial products company’s stock after selling 2,938 shares during the quarter. Arizona State Retirement System’s holdings in Deere & Company were worth $42,788,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC).

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also bought and sold shares of DE. Cary Street Partners Financial LLC boosted its stake in Deere & Company by 11.8% in the fourth quarter. Cary Street Partners Financial LLC now owns 10,312 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $4,801,000 after buying an additional 1,086 shares in the last quarter. Baxter Bros Inc. bought a new position in Deere & Company during the second quarter valued at approximately $1,707,000. Global Retirement Partners LLC purchased a new position in shares of Deere & Company during the second quarter worth approximately $3,890,000. Westpac Banking Corp raised its stake in shares of Deere & Company by 78.6% during the fourth quarter. Westpac Banking Corp now owns 6,925 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $3,224,000 after acquiring an additional 3,047 shares in the last quarter. Finally, TRB Wealth Management LLC bought a new stake in shares of Deere & Company in the 2nd quarter worth approximately $623,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 68.58% of the company’s stock.

Deere & Company Trading Down 1.8%

Shares of Deere & Company stock traded down $12.81 on Tuesday, hitting $680.72. The stock had a trading volume of 883,477 shares, compared to its average volume of 1,380,189. The company has a quick ratio of 1.89, a current ratio of 2.10 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.45. Deere & Company has a one year low of $433.00 and a one year high of $705.88. The stock’s 50-day simple moving average is $620.43 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $596.90. The stock has a market cap of $183.54 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 37.82, a PEG ratio of 2.86 and a beta of 0.90.

Deere & Company (NYSE:DE) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, August 20th. The industrial products company reported $5.10 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $4.69 by $0.41. The company had revenue of $12.61 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $10.81 billion. Deere & Company had a net margin of 10.16% and a return on equity of 18.10%. The firm’s revenue was up 6.2% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the prior year, the business posted $4.75 EPS. As a group, sell-side analysts predict that Deere & Company will post 18.12 EPS for the current year.

Deere & Company Dividend Announcement

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, November 9th. Stockholders of record on Wednesday, September 30th will be paid a dividend of $1.62 per share. This represents a $6.48 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.0%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Wednesday, September 30th. Deere & Company’s dividend payout ratio is 36.00%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of equities research analysts have recently issued reports on the stock. JPMorgan Chase & Co. upped their price objective on shares of Deere & Company from $570.00 to $585.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research note on Friday, August 21st. Bank of America lowered their price target on shares of Deere & Company from $672.00 to $607.50 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a research note on Friday, May 22nd. Barclays upped their price target on shares of Deere & Company from $640.00 to $675.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research report on Monday, August 24th. Seaport Research Partners set a $570.00 price objective on Deere & Company in a research note on Friday, August 14th. Finally, Nomura upgraded Deere & Company to a “buy” rating in a report on Monday, August 31st. Sixteen analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and eight have issued a Hold rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, the company has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $680.73.

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.