2,660 Shares in Deere & Company (NYSE:DE) Purchased by BankPlus Trust Department

BankPlus Trust Department purchased a new position in Deere & Company (NYSE:DE) during the fourth quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm purchased 2,660 shares of the industrial products company’s stock, valued at approximately $1,127,000.

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors also recently added to or reduced their stakes in DE. Robertson Stephens Wealth Management LLC boosted its holdings in shares of Deere & Company by 2.2% in the fourth quarter. Robertson Stephens Wealth Management LLC now owns 1,002 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $426,000 after acquiring an additional 22 shares during the period. DLK Investment Management LLC lifted its holdings in shares of Deere & Company by 0.3% during the 4th quarter. DLK Investment Management LLC now owns 8,212 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $3,479,000 after acquiring an additional 24 shares during the last quarter. Quent Capital LLC grew its position in Deere & Company by 2.8% during the fourth quarter. Quent Capital LLC now owns 889 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $377,000 after acquiring an additional 24 shares during the last quarter. Valeo Financial Advisors LLC boosted its holdings in Deere & Company by 0.3% during the 4th quarter. Valeo Financial Advisors LLC now owns 8,019 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $3,398,000 after acquiring an additional 24 shares during the period. Finally, Carret Asset Management LLC grew its holdings in Deere & Company by 0.3% in the 3rd quarter. Carret Asset Management LLC now owns 8,148 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $3,401,000 after acquiring an additional 25 shares during the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 68.58% of the company’s stock.

Deere & Company Stock Down 1.2 %

NYSE DE opened at $489.98 on Monday. The firm has a 50-day simple moving average of $452.07 and a 200 day simple moving average of $421.97. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.94, a quick ratio of 1.98 and a current ratio of 2.22. The stock has a market cap of $133.45 billion, a PE ratio of 21.72, a PEG ratio of 2.14 and a beta of 0.98. Deere & Company has a twelve month low of $340.20 and a twelve month high of $515.05.

Deere & Company (NYSE:DE) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, February 13th. The industrial products company reported $3.19 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $3.14 by $0.05. Deere & Company had a net margin of 12.94% and a return on equity of 27.31%. On average, research analysts forecast that Deere & Company will post 19.32 EPS for the current year.

Deere & Company Increases Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, February 10th. Stockholders of record on Tuesday, December 31st were paid a $1.62 dividend. The ex-dividend date was Tuesday, December 31st. This is a boost from Deere & Company’s previous quarterly dividend of $1.47. This represents a $6.48 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.32%. Deere & Company’s dividend payout ratio is 28.72%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several brokerages have commented on DE. Evercore ISI raised their price objective on Deere & Company from $437.00 to $455.00 and gave the company an “in-line” rating in a research report on Wednesday, February 19th. Jefferies Financial Group lowered Deere & Company from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating and set a $510.00 price objective for the company. in a research note on Friday, December 6th. Morgan Stanley lifted their price objective on shares of Deere & Company from $401.00 to $450.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research note on Monday, November 25th. Barclays increased their price target on Deere & Company from $400.00 to $475.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a report on Friday, November 22nd. Finally, UBS Group upped their target price on Deere & Company from $404.00 to $462.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a report on Friday, November 22nd. One analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, eleven have given a hold rating and eight have assigned a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat.com, Deere & Company has an average rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $454.65.

Insider Activity at Deere & Company

In other news, insider Rajesh Kalathur sold 24,580 shares of Deere & Company stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, February 18th. The stock was sold at an average price of $500.61, for a total transaction of $12,304,993.80. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider now directly owns 74,878 shares in the company, valued at approximately $37,484,675.58. The trade was a 24.71 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this link. 0.29% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

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.