Van ECK Associates Corp Sells 6,733 Shares of Deere & Company $DE

Van ECK Associates Corp decreased its position in shares of Deere & Company (NYSE:DE) by 1.4% during the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm owned 480,964 shares of the industrial products company’s stock after selling 6,733 shares during the period. Van ECK Associates Corp’s holdings in Deere & Company were worth $223,923,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other institutional investors have also added to or reduced their stakes in the stock. Victory Capital Management Inc. grew its holdings in Deere & Company by 11.4% during the 4th quarter. Victory Capital Management Inc. now owns 208,307 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $96,982,000 after buying an additional 21,329 shares in the last quarter. Ieq Capital LLC boosted its position in shares of Deere & Company by 9.2% during the 4th quarter. Ieq Capital LLC now owns 6,552 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $3,051,000 after acquiring an additional 550 shares during the last quarter. First National Bank of Omaha bought a new position in shares of Deere & Company during the 4th quarter valued at approximately $1,126,000. Alchemi Wealth LLC bought a new position in shares of Deere & Company during the 4th quarter valued at approximately $317,000. Finally, De Lisle Partners LLP boosted its position in shares of Deere & Company by 8.7% during the 4th quarter. De Lisle Partners LLP now owns 12,500 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $5,822,000 after acquiring an additional 1,000 shares during the last quarter. 68.58% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Deere & Company Stock Up 1.5%

Shares of DE opened at $577.05 on Friday. The company has a market cap of $155.77 billion, a PE ratio of 32.69, a P/E/G ratio of 2.10 and a beta of 0.92. The business has a fifty day moving average of $573.27 and a 200 day moving average of $548.89. Deere & Company has a 52-week low of $433.00 and a 52-week high of $674.19. The company has a quick ratio of 1.95, a current ratio of 2.18 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.54.

Deere & Company (NYSE:DE) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, May 21st. The industrial products company reported $6.55 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $5.70 by $0.85. The company had revenue of $13.37 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $11.55 billion. Deere & Company had a return on equity of 18.25% and a net margin of 10.09%.Deere & Company’s revenue was up 5.4% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period last year, the company earned $6.64 earnings per share. On average, sell-side analysts expect that Deere & Company will post 18.13 EPS for the current year.

Deere & Company Announces Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, August 10th. Shareholders of record on Tuesday, June 30th will be paid a $1.62 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Tuesday, June 30th. This represents a $6.48 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.1%. Deere & Company’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 36.71%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of research analysts have recently commented on DE shares. Royal Bank Of Canada reiterated an “outperform” rating and set a $752.00 target price on shares of Deere & Company in a research report on Monday, June 1st. Weiss Ratings upgraded Deere & Company from a “hold (c)” rating to a “hold (c+)” rating in a research report on Thursday, May 21st. Robert W. Baird lowered their target price on Deere & Company from $580.00 to $525.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a research report on Friday, May 22nd. DA Davidson lowered their target price on Deere & Company from $775.00 to $685.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a research report on Friday, May 22nd. Finally, Wolfe Research increased their target price on Deere & Company from $550.00 to $660.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research report on Tuesday, March 31st. Fourteen equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and nine have assigned a Hold rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, Deere & Company has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $639.58.

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.