Los Angeles Capital Management LLC Sells 226,577 Shares of Deere & Company (NYSE:DE)

Los Angeles Capital Management LLC decreased its position in Deere & Company (NYSE:DE) by 87.8% during the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund owned 31,465 shares of the industrial products company’s stock after selling 226,577 shares during the quarter. Los Angeles Capital Management LLC’s holdings in Deere & Company were worth $12,582,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC).

Other hedge funds have also modified their holdings of the company. Benjamin Edwards Inc. raised its position in shares of Deere & Company by 20.0% during the 4th quarter. Benjamin Edwards Inc. now owns 11,525 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $4,609,000 after buying an additional 1,917 shares in the last quarter. Commonwealth Equity Services LLC raised its position in Deere & Company by 0.4% during the fourth quarter. Commonwealth Equity Services LLC now owns 173,667 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $69,444,000 after purchasing an additional 693 shares during the period. Summit Asset Management LLC raised its position in Deere & Company by 24.1% during the fourth quarter. Summit Asset Management LLC now owns 1,030 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $412,000 after purchasing an additional 200 shares during the period. West Family Investments Inc. bought a new stake in shares of Deere & Company in the 4th quarter valued at approximately $201,000. Finally, Fisher Asset Management LLC boosted its holdings in shares of Deere & Company by 11.3% in the 4th quarter. Fisher Asset Management LLC now owns 1,480,725 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $592,098,000 after purchasing an additional 149,980 shares during the period. 68.58% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Deere & Company Trading Up 1.3 %

Shares of NYSE:DE opened at $400.96 on Friday. The company has a quick ratio of 1.81, a current ratio of 2.05 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.81. Deere & Company has a 52-week low of $345.55 and a 52-week high of $450.00. The stock has a market cap of $111.61 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 11.68, a PEG ratio of 1.51 and a beta of 1.04. The business has a 50-day moving average price of $391.45 and a 200-day moving average price of $383.91.

Deere & Company (NYSE:DE) last issued its earnings results 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 net margin of 16.38% and a return on equity of 44.60%. The firm’s revenue was down 8.0% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter last year, the company posted $6.55 earnings per share. Equities analysts predict that Deere & Company will post 27.37 EPS for the current year.

Deere & Company Dividend Announcement

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 dividend of $1.47 per share. This represents a $5.88 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.47%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Wednesday, March 27th. Deere & Company’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 17.12%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several equities analysts recently commented on DE shares. JPMorgan Chase & Co. upped their price target on shares of Deere & Company from $415.00 to $425.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a report on Friday, April 12th. Melius Research reaffirmed a “hold” rating on shares of Deere & Company in a research note on Monday, January 8th. Wells Fargo & Company dropped their price objective on Deere & Company from $445.00 to $425.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a report on Friday, February 16th. Stifel Nicolaus cut their price objective on Deere & Company from $435.00 to $425.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a research report on Friday, February 16th. Finally, Evercore ISI raised their price target on shares of 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 equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and nine have given a buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company presently has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus 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.