Truist Financial Corp Decreases Position in Deere & Company $DE

Truist Financial Corp decreased its holdings in Deere & Company (NYSE:DE) by 4.6% in the third quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor owned 225,378 shares of the industrial products company’s stock after selling 10,891 shares during the quarter. Truist Financial Corp owned about 0.08% of Deere & Company worth $103,056,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Mid American Wealth Advisory Group Inc. purchased a new stake in Deere & Company in the second quarter valued at about $25,000. Howard Hughes Medical Institute purchased a new stake in shares of Deere & Company during the second quarter worth about $27,000. Center for Financial Planning Inc. increased its holdings in shares of Deere & Company by 406.7% during the second quarter. Center for Financial Planning Inc. now owns 76 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $39,000 after acquiring an additional 61 shares in the last quarter. Soundwatch Capital LLC purchased a new position in shares of Deere & Company in the 2nd quarter valued at approximately $41,000. Finally, Lynch Asset Management Inc. purchased a new position in shares of Deere & Company in the 3rd quarter valued at approximately $46,000. 68.58% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several analysts have weighed in on the stock. Oppenheimer boosted their target price on shares of Deere & Company from $512.00 to $531.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research report on Friday, November 28th. Daiwa Capital Markets lowered their price objective on shares of Deere & Company from $530.00 to $520.00 and set an “outperform” rating for the company in a research note on Tuesday, December 2nd. Sanford C. Bernstein reissued a “market perform” rating on shares of Deere & Company in a report on Tuesday, December 9th. Morgan Stanley reissued an “overweight” rating and issued a $560.00 target price on shares of Deere & Company in a research report on Tuesday, December 9th. Finally, Weiss Ratings reaffirmed a “hold (c+)” rating on shares of Deere & Company in a research report on Monday, December 29th. Fifteen equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and nine have assigned a Hold rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, Deere & Company currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $524.20.

Deere & Company Stock Up 1.0%

NYSE:DE opened at $524.44 on Thursday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.68, a current ratio of 2.22 and a quick ratio of 2.01. The company’s fifty day moving average price is $485.34 and its 200-day moving average price is $482.00. Deere & Company has a 1-year low of $404.42 and a 1-year high of $533.78. The firm has a market capitalization of $142.16 billion, a P/E ratio of 28.33, a PEG ratio of 2.07 and a beta of 1.00.

Deere & Company (NYSE:DE) last posted its earnings results on Wednesday, November 26th. The industrial products company reported $3.93 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $3.96 by ($0.03). The business had revenue of $12.39 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $9.77 billion. Deere & Company had a net margin of 11.00% and a return on equity of 20.54%. The company’s revenue for the quarter was up 14.1% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm earned $4.55 earnings per share. As a group, equities research analysts anticipate that Deere & Company will post 19.32 EPS for the current year.

Deere & Company Announces Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, February 9th. Stockholders of record on Wednesday, December 31st will be paid a $1.62 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Wednesday, December 31st. This represents a $6.48 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.2%. Deere & Company’s dividend payout ratio is presently 35.01%.

Insider Activity

In other Deere & Company news, CEO John C. May II sold 41,472 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, January 8th. The stock was sold at an average price of $501.49, for a total value of $20,797,793.28. Following the sale, the chief executive officer owned 117,970 shares in the company, valued at approximately $59,160,775.30. This represents a 26.01% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is accessible through this link. Also, insider Cory J. Reed sold 12,000 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, January 14th. The stock was sold at an average price of $510.00, for a total transaction of $6,120,000.00. Following the sale, the insider directly owned 20,792 shares in the company, valued at $10,603,920. The trade was a 36.59% decrease in their position. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. Over the last ninety days, insiders have sold 64,578 shares of company stock worth $32,471,682. 0.29% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

About Deere & Company

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.