Hills Bank & Trust Co Sells 170 Shares of Deere & Company (NYSE:DE)

Hills Bank & Trust Co decreased its holdings in shares of Deere & Company (NYSE:DE) by 2.3% in the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm owned 7,291 shares of the industrial products company’s stock after selling 170 shares during the period. Hills Bank & Trust Co’s holdings in Deere & Company were worth $3,089,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC).

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently modified their holdings of the stock. Victory Capital Management Inc. lifted its position in shares of Deere & Company by 2.6% during the 3rd quarter. Victory Capital Management Inc. now owns 100,110 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $41,779,000 after buying an additional 2,569 shares in the last quarter. Oppenheimer Asset Management Inc. boosted its holdings in Deere & Company by 1.3% in the 3rd quarter. Oppenheimer Asset Management Inc. now owns 16,009 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $6,681,000 after buying an additional 201 shares during the period. Cable Hill Partners LLC purchased a new stake in Deere & Company in the 3rd quarter worth $214,000. KBC Group NV raised its holdings in Deere & Company by 10.9% during the third quarter. KBC Group NV now owns 101,794 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $42,482,000 after acquiring an additional 9,968 shares during the period. Finally, Metis Global Partners LLC raised its stake in Deere & Company by 0.5% during the 3rd quarter. Metis Global Partners LLC now owns 10,068 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $4,202,000 after purchasing an additional 49 shares during the period. 68.58% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Insider Transactions at Deere & Company

In other news, insider Rajesh Kalathur sold 24,580 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Tuesday, February 18th. The stock was sold at an average price of $500.61, for a total value of $12,304,993.80. Following the completion of the sale, the insider now owns 74,878 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $37,484,675.58. This trade represents a 24.71 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this hyperlink. Corporate insiders own 0.29% of the company’s stock.

Deere & Company Trading Up 2.5 %

DE stock opened at $478.67 on Friday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.94, a current ratio of 2.22 and a quick ratio of 1.98. The company has a market capitalization of $129.92 billion, a PE ratio of 21.22, a P/E/G ratio of 2.14 and a beta of 1.01. The firm’s 50-day moving average is $466.59 and its 200 day moving average is $432.84. Deere & Company has a 12 month low of $340.20 and a 12 month high of $515.05.

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

Deere & Company Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, May 8th. Investors of record on Monday, March 31st will be paid a $1.62 dividend. This represents a $6.48 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.35%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, March 31st. Deere & Company’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 28.72%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of equities research analysts have issued reports on DE shares. Argus set a $510.00 price objective on shares of Deere & Company in a report on Friday, March 7th. Barclays lifted their target price on Deere & Company from $400.00 to $475.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a report on Friday, November 22nd. Jefferies Financial Group cut Deere & Company from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating and set a $510.00 price target for the company. in a report on Friday, December 6th. Robert W. Baird reissued a “neutral” rating and issued a $501.00 target price on shares of Deere & Company in a report on Monday, March 3rd. Finally, Oppenheimer boosted their target price on shares of Deere & Company from $477.00 to $507.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a report on Tuesday, January 28th. One analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, thirteen have issued a hold rating and eight have assigned a buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company presently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $460.00.

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.