Foster & Motley Inc. Increases Stock Holdings in Deere & Company (NYSE:DE)

Foster & Motley Inc. grew its holdings in shares of Deere & Company (NYSE:DE) by 13.1% during the fourth quarter, Holdings Channel reports. The firm owned 3,151 shares of the industrial products company’s stock after purchasing an additional 365 shares during the quarter. Foster & Motley Inc.’s holdings in Deere & Company were worth $1,260,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also made changes to their positions in the company. Essex Savings Bank increased its holdings in Deere & Company by 0.5% during the 4th quarter. Essex Savings Bank now owns 5,367 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $2,146,000 after purchasing an additional 26 shares during the period. Valley National Advisers Inc. increased its stake in shares of Deere & Company by 1.5% during the fourth quarter. Valley National Advisers Inc. now owns 1,879 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $751,000 after buying an additional 27 shares during the period. Bleakley Financial Group LLC raised its holdings in Deere & Company by 0.5% in the fourth quarter. Bleakley Financial Group LLC now owns 5,158 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $2,063,000 after acquiring an additional 27 shares in the last quarter. Simplicity Solutions LLC raised its holdings in Deere & Company by 0.5% in the fourth quarter. Simplicity Solutions LLC now owns 5,158 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $2,063,000 after acquiring an additional 27 shares in the last quarter. Finally, SageView Advisory Group LLC lifted its stake in Deere & Company by 2.4% in the third quarter. SageView Advisory Group LLC now owns 1,201 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $453,000 after acquiring an additional 28 shares during the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 68.58% of the company’s stock.

Deere & Company Stock Performance

Shares of DE stock opened at $397.29 on Wednesday. The company has a current ratio of 2.05, a quick ratio of 1.81 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.81. The stock has a 50 day simple moving average of $386.42 and a 200-day simple moving average of $383.39. The company has a market cap of $110.59 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 11.57, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.50 and a beta of 1.04. Deere & Company has a 12-month low of $345.55 and a 12-month high of $450.00.

Deere & Company (NYSE:DE) last released its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, February 15th. The industrial products company reported $6.23 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $5.19 by $1.04. The firm had revenue of $10.49 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $10.30 billion. Deere & Company had a return on equity of 44.60% and a net margin of 16.38%. Deere & Company’s revenue was down 8.0% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the prior year, the business posted $6.55 earnings per share. On average, equities analysts forecast that Deere & Company will post 27.37 EPS for the current year.

Deere & Company Announces Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, May 8th. Investors of record on Friday, March 29th will be issued a $1.47 dividend. This represents a $5.88 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.48%. The ex-dividend date is Wednesday, March 27th. Deere & Company’s dividend payout ratio is currently 17.12%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several equities research analysts have recently issued reports on the stock. Melius cut shares of Deere & Company from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Monday, January 8th. Morgan Stanley initiated coverage on Deere & Company in a research report on Monday, January 8th. They set an “overweight” rating and a $430.00 target price on the stock. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft dropped their price target on shares of Deere & Company from $425.00 to $401.00 and set a “hold” rating on the stock in a research note on Friday, February 16th. Citigroup reduced their price objective on shares of Deere & Company from $450.00 to $435.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a research report on Friday, February 16th. Finally, Melius Research reaffirmed a “hold” rating on shares of Deere & Company in a research report on Monday, January 8th. Ten investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and nine have assigned a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the company presently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $433.28.

About Deere & Company

Deere & Company engages in the manufacture and distribution of various equipment worldwide. The company operates through four segments: Production and Precision Agriculture, Small Agriculture and Turf, Construction and Forestry, and Financial Services. The Production and Precision Agriculture segment provides large and medium tractors, combines, cotton pickers and strippers, sugarcane harvesters and loaders, harvesting front-end equipment, pull-behind scrapers, and tillage and seeding equipment, as well as application equipment, including sprayers and nutrient management, and soil preparation machinery for grain growers.