Gamco Investors INC. ET AL Reduces Stake in Deere & Company (NYSE:DE)

Gamco Investors INC. ET AL lessened its stake in shares of Deere & Company (NYSE:DE) by 5.7% in the fourth quarter, Holdings Channel reports. The institutional investor owned 140,946 shares of the industrial products company’s stock after selling 8,458 shares during the quarter. Gamco Investors INC. ET AL’s holdings in Deere & Company were worth $59,719,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently modified their holdings of the stock. M&T Bank Corp raised its position in Deere & Company by 4.0% during the third quarter. M&T Bank Corp now owns 170,325 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $71,081,000 after purchasing an additional 6,520 shares in the last quarter. SkyView Investment Advisors LLC grew its position in Deere & Company by 6.6% during the third quarter. SkyView Investment Advisors LLC now owns 1,098 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $458,000 after acquiring an additional 68 shares during the last quarter. Pine Valley Investments Ltd Liability Co raised its stake in shares of Deere & Company by 13.9% during the third quarter. Pine Valley Investments Ltd Liability Co now owns 9,879 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $4,131,000 after acquiring an additional 1,205 shares in the last quarter. Arvest Bank Trust Division purchased a new stake in shares of Deere & Company in the 3rd quarter valued at $1,252,000. Finally, Wilmington Savings Fund Society FSB raised its position in Deere & Company by 162.0% in the 3rd quarter. Wilmington Savings Fund Society FSB now owns 21,563 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $8,999,000 after purchasing an additional 13,334 shares during the period. 68.58% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Deere & Company Stock Performance

Deere & Company stock opened at $467.89 on Tuesday. Deere & Company has a fifty-two week low of $340.20 and a fifty-two week high of $515.05. The company has a market capitalization of $126.99 billion, a PE ratio of 20.74, a P/E/G ratio of 2.14 and a beta of 1.00. The company has a 50 day moving average price of $470.92 and a 200-day moving average price of $443.86. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.94, a quick ratio of 1.98 and a current ratio of 2.22.

Deere & Company (NYSE:DE) last posted its 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 return on equity of 27.31% and a net margin of 12.94%. As a group, equities analysts forecast that Deere & Company will post 19.32 earnings per share for the current year.

Deere & Company Announces Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, May 8th. Shareholders of record on Monday, March 31st will be given a dividend of $1.62 per share. This represents a $6.48 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.38%. The ex-dividend date is Monday, March 31st. Deere & Company’s dividend payout ratio is currently 28.72%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several equities research analysts recently weighed in on the company. UBS Group dropped their target price on Deere & Company from $462.00 to $440.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a report on Monday, April 7th. Baird R W downgraded shares of Deere & Company from a “strong-buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Monday, March 3rd. Robert W. Baird restated a “neutral” rating and set a $501.00 price target on shares of Deere & Company in a report on Monday, March 3rd. Truist Financial reiterated a “buy” rating and issued a $546.00 price objective (down previously from $550.00) on shares of Deere & Company in a report on Friday, February 14th. Finally, Oppenheimer raised their price target on Deere & Company from $477.00 to $507.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research note on Tuesday, January 28th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, thirteen have assigned a hold rating and eight have assigned a buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company currently has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $457.26.

Insider Buying and Selling at Deere & Company

In related news, insider Rajesh Kalathur sold 24,580 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated 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 transaction, the insider now directly owns 74,878 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $37,484,675.58. This trade represents a 24.71 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through the SEC website. 0.29% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

Deere & Company Company Profile

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.