Westpac Banking Corp Raises Position in Deere & Company (NYSE:DE)

Westpac Banking Corp grew its stake in Deere & Company (NYSE:DE) by 17.9% during the fourth quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 11,904 shares of the industrial products company’s stock after purchasing an additional 1,809 shares during the quarter. Westpac Banking Corp’s holdings in Deere & Company were worth $5,044,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other hedge funds also recently modified their holdings of the stock. Wellington Management Group LLP boosted its holdings in shares of Deere & Company by 32.0% in the 3rd quarter. Wellington Management Group LLP now owns 7,352,465 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $3,068,404,000 after buying an additional 1,782,984 shares during the last quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC boosted its stake in Deere & Company by 1.9% in the fourth quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 5,305,571 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $2,247,216,000 after acquiring an additional 97,203 shares during the last quarter. Norges Bank bought a new position in shares of Deere & Company during the 4th quarter valued at approximately $1,244,094,000. Fisher Asset Management LLC increased its stake in shares of Deere & Company by 8.1% during the 4th quarter. Fisher Asset Management LLC now owns 2,155,613 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $913,334,000 after purchasing an additional 160,956 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Bank of New York Mellon Corp raised its holdings in shares of Deere & Company by 5.5% in the 4th quarter. Bank of New York Mellon Corp now owns 2,063,898 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $874,473,000 after purchasing an additional 107,544 shares during the period. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 68.58% of the company’s stock.

Insider Transactions at Deere & Company

In related news, insider Rajesh Kalathur sold 24,580 shares of the 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 transaction, the insider now owns 74,878 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $37,484,675.58. This represents a 24.71 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through the SEC website. 0.29% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

Deere & Company Price Performance

Shares of NYSE DE opened at $470.54 on Thursday. The stock’s 50-day simple moving average is $478.09 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $441.50. Deere & Company has a twelve month low of $340.20 and a twelve month high of $515.05. The firm has a market capitalization of $127.71 billion, a P/E ratio of 20.86, a P/E/G ratio of 2.14 and a beta of 1.01. The company has a quick ratio of 1.98, a current ratio of 2.22 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.94.

Deere & Company (NYSE:DE) last issued 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%. As a group, equities analysts anticipate that Deere & Company will post 19.32 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Deere & Company Dividend Announcement

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, May 8th. Stockholders of record on Monday, March 31st will be given a dividend of $1.62 per share. This represents a $6.48 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.38%. The ex-dividend date is Monday, March 31st. Deere & Company’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 28.72%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of analysts have issued reports on the company. StockNews.com raised Deere & Company from a “sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Saturday, March 29th. Truist Financial reissued a “buy” rating and issued a $546.00 price objective (down previously from $550.00) on shares of Deere & Company in a report on Friday, February 14th. Citigroup boosted their price objective on Deere & Company from $430.00 to $480.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research note on Friday, February 14th. Jefferies Financial Group lowered shares of Deere & Company from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating and set a $510.00 target price for the company. in a research report on Friday, December 6th. Finally, Evercore ISI lifted their target price on shares of Deere & Company from $437.00 to $455.00 and gave the stock an “in-line” rating in a research note on Wednesday, February 19th. Fourteen analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and eight have issued a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the company presently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $460.00.

Deere & Company Company Profile

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.