GAMMA Investing LLC Acquires New Stake in Deere & Company (NYSE:DE)

GAMMA Investing LLC acquired a new position in shares of Deere & Company (NYSE:DE) in the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the SEC. The institutional investor acquired 1,289 shares of the industrial products company’s stock, valued at approximately $507,000.

Other hedge funds also recently made changes to their positions in the company. Briaud Financial Planning Inc purchased a new stake in Deere & Company in the 3rd quarter valued at approximately $25,000. ZRC Wealth Management LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Deere & Company in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $28,000. Rakuten Securities Inc. acquired a new position in Deere & Company during the fourth quarter worth $28,000. Naples Money Management LLC purchased a new position in Deere & Company in the fourth quarter worth $29,000. Finally, Milestone Investment Advisors LLC acquired a new stake in Deere & Company in the third quarter valued at $37,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 68.58% of the company’s stock.

Deere & Company Trading Down 0.7 %

DE traded down $2.87 during midday trading on Wednesday, hitting $394.34. The company’s stock had a trading volume of 400,721 shares, compared to its average volume of 1,473,120. Deere & Company has a 52-week low of $345.55 and a 52-week high of $450.00. The firm has a 50-day moving average price of $386.42 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $383.39. 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 firm has a market cap of $109.77 billion, a P/E ratio of 11.50, a PEG ratio of 1.50 and a beta of 1.04.

Deere & Company (NYSE:DE) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, February 15th. The industrial products company reported $6.23 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 analyst estimates of $10.30 billion. Deere & Company had a net margin of 16.38% and a return on equity of 44.60%. Deere & Company’s revenue for the quarter 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, research analysts anticipate that Deere & Company will post 27.37 earnings per share for the current year.

Deere & Company Announces Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, May 8th. Investors of record on Friday, March 29th will be given a $1.47 dividend. This represents a $5.88 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.49%. The ex-dividend date is Wednesday, March 27th. Deere & Company’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 17.12%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of equities analysts have recently issued reports on DE shares. Melius downgraded shares of Deere & Company from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Monday, January 8th. Morgan Stanley assumed coverage on Deere & Company in a research note on Monday, January 8th. They issued an “overweight” rating and a $430.00 price objective for the company. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft decreased their target price on Deere & Company from $425.00 to $401.00 and set a “hold” rating on the stock in a research report on Friday, February 16th. Wells Fargo & Company lowered their target price on Deere & Company from $445.00 to $425.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a report on Friday, February 16th. Finally, Evercore ISI lifted their price target on Deere & Company from $381.00 to $387.00 and gave the stock an “in-line” rating in a research note on Tuesday, February 20th. Ten investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and nine have assigned a buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, Deere & Company currently has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $433.28.

Deere & Company Profile

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.