Brokerages Set Deere & Company (NYSE:DE) Price Target at $644.70

Shares of Deere & Company (NYSE:DE) have been given a consensus recommendation of “Moderate Buy” by the twenty-five research firms that are currently covering the firm, Marketbeat reports. One analyst has rated the stock with a sell recommendation, eight have issued a hold recommendation and sixteen have given a buy recommendation to the company. The average 1-year price objective among brokerages that have covered the stock in the last year is $644.70.

DE has been the subject of a number of research reports. Wall Street Zen raised shares of Deere & Company from a “sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Saturday, February 7th. Argus lifted their price target on shares of Deere & Company from $540.00 to $700.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Tuesday, March 3rd. DA Davidson upped their price objective on shares of Deere & Company from $580.00 to $775.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Friday, February 20th. Zacks Research raised shares of Deere & Company from a “strong sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Wednesday, December 3rd. Finally, Royal Bank Of Canada raised their target price on shares of Deere & Company from $541.00 to $736.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research report on Friday, February 20th.

Deere & Company Trading Up 0.4%

Shares of DE opened at $574.55 on Friday. Deere & Company has a 52-week low of $404.42 and a 52-week high of $674.19. The business’s fifty day moving average is $568.12 and its 200-day moving average is $504.39. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.59, a quick ratio of 1.96 and a current ratio of 2.21. The firm has a market cap of $155.19 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 32.39, a PEG ratio of 2.00 and a beta of 0.96.

Deere & Company (NYSE:DE) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, February 19th. The industrial products company reported $2.42 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $1.90 by $0.52. The business had revenue of $9.61 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $7.50 billion. Deere & Company had a return on equity of 18.93% and a net margin of 10.29%.Deere & Company’s revenue for the quarter was up 17.5% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the prior year, the company earned $3.19 EPS. Equities analysts anticipate that Deere & Company will post 19.32 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Deere & Company Announces Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, May 8th. Stockholders of record on Tuesday, March 31st will be paid a $1.62 dividend. This represents a $6.48 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.1%. The ex-dividend date is Tuesday, March 31st. Deere & Company’s dividend payout ratio is presently 36.53%.

Insider Buying and Selling at Deere & Company

In other Deere & Company news, insider Cory J. Reed sold 12,000 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, January 14th. The stock was sold at an average price of $510.00, for a total value of $6,120,000.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider directly owned 20,792 shares in the company, valued at approximately $10,603,920. This trade represents a 36.59% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this link. Also, CEO John C. May II sold 41,472 shares of Deere & Company stock in a transaction dated Thursday, January 8th. The shares were sold at an average price of $501.49, for a total value of $20,797,793.28. Following the sale, the chief executive officer directly owned 117,970 shares in the company, valued at $59,160,775.30. The trade was a 26.01% decrease in their ownership of the stock. Additional details regarding this sale are available in the official SEC disclosure. Company insiders own 0.29% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Large investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the business. Strategic Advocates LLC acquired a new position in Deere & Company in the 3rd quarter valued at approximately $25,000. Howard Hughes Medical Institute bought a new position in shares of Deere & Company during the second quarter valued at $27,000. Key Capital Management INC acquired a new position in shares of Deere & Company during the fourth quarter worth $27,000. Timmons Wealth Management LLC acquired a new position in shares of Deere & Company during the fourth quarter worth $29,000. Finally, Activest Wealth Management grew its stake in shares of Deere & Company by 69.2% in the third quarter. Activest Wealth Management now owns 66 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $30,000 after purchasing an additional 27 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors own 68.58% of the company’s stock.

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.