Legal & General Group Plc Cuts Stock Holdings in Deere & Company (NYSE:DE)

Legal & General Group Plc cut its stake in shares of Deere & Company (NYSE:DE) by 28.3% in the 4th quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm owned 1,556,767 shares of the industrial products company’s stock after selling 613,040 shares during the period. Legal & General Group Plc owned 0.57% of Deere & Company worth $659,602,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other institutional investors and hedge funds have also made changes to their positions in the company. Pineridge Advisors LLC lifted its stake in shares of Deere & Company by 60.5% in the 4th quarter. Pineridge Advisors LLC now owns 69 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $29,000 after purchasing an additional 26 shares in the last quarter. Modus Advisors LLC acquired a new position in Deere & Company during the 4th quarter worth approximately $32,000. YANKCOM Partnership purchased a new position in shares of Deere & Company in the fourth quarter valued at $34,000. Synergy Asset Management LLC acquired a new stake in Deere & Company during the 4th quarter valued at approximately $35,000. Finally, Continuum Advisory LLC increased its position in shares of Deere & Company by 155.8% in the 3rd quarter. Continuum Advisory LLC now owns 110 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $43,000 after purchasing an additional 67 shares during the last quarter. 68.58% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Insider Buying and Selling at Deere & Company

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

Deere & Company Price Performance

Shares of NYSE DE opened at $430.25 on Monday. The firm has a market cap of $116.78 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 19.07, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.14 and a beta of 1.00. The stock has a fifty day simple moving average of $476.55 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $442.38. The company has a current ratio of 2.22, a quick ratio of 1.98 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.94. Deere & Company has a 1-year low of $340.20 and a 1-year high of $515.05.

Deere & Company (NYSE:DE) last posted 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%. Analysts anticipate that Deere & Company will post 19.32 earnings per share for the current year.

Deere & Company Dividend Announcement

The business 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 dividend of $1.62 per share. The ex-dividend date is Monday, March 31st. This represents a $6.48 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.51%. Deere & Company’s payout ratio is 28.72%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several research analysts have commented on the stock. StockNews.com cut shares of Deere & Company from a “hold” rating to a “sell” rating in a research report on Sunday. Citigroup lifted their price objective on shares of Deere & Company from $430.00 to $480.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research note on Friday, February 14th. Robert W. Baird reaffirmed a “neutral” rating and issued a $501.00 price target on shares of Deere & Company in a report on Monday, March 3rd. JPMorgan Chase & Co. increased their price target on Deere & Company from $470.00 to $500.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research report on Monday, February 10th. Finally, Baird R W lowered shares of Deere & Company from a “strong-buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Monday, March 3rd. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, thirteen have given a hold rating and eight have assigned a buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price 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.