Gabelli Funds LLC Sells 3,888 Shares of Deere & Company $DE

Gabelli Funds LLC reduced its position in shares of Deere & Company (NYSE:DE) by 1.5% in the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the SEC. The institutional investor owned 253,014 shares of the industrial products company’s stock after selling 3,888 shares during the quarter. Deere & Company accounts for about 0.8% of Gabelli Funds LLC’s investment portfolio, making the stock its 19th biggest holding. Gabelli Funds LLC’s holdings in Deere & Company were worth $117,796,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other institutional investors and hedge funds have also bought and sold shares of the company. Vanguard Group Inc. increased its stake in Deere & Company by 0.9% during the 4th quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 22,583,185 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $10,514,053,000 after purchasing an additional 198,332 shares in the last quarter. Capital World Investors increased its stake in Deere & Company by 5.5% during the 3rd quarter. Capital World Investors now owns 6,233,740 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $2,850,687,000 after purchasing an additional 322,582 shares in the last quarter. Fisher Asset Management LLC grew its stake in shares of Deere & Company by 5.5% in the third quarter. Fisher Asset Management LLC now owns 2,722,018 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $1,244,670,000 after acquiring an additional 141,790 shares during the period. Northwestern Mutual Wealth Management Co. grew its stake in shares of Deere & Company by 1,725.8% in the fourth quarter. Northwestern Mutual Wealth Management Co. now owns 2,003,715 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $932,870,000 after acquiring an additional 1,893,972 shares during the period. Finally, M&T Bank Corp grew its stake in shares of Deere & Company by 1,199.8% in the fourth quarter. M&T Bank Corp now owns 1,864,701 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $868,149,000 after acquiring an additional 1,721,239 shares during the period. 68.58% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Deere & Company Stock Performance

DE opened at $562.12 on Monday. The company has a current ratio of 2.21, a quick ratio of 1.96 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.59. The company has a market cap of $151.83 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 31.69, a PEG ratio of 1.96 and a beta of 0.96. The company’s 50 day moving average is $580.96 and its 200 day moving average is $537.44. Deere & Company has a 12-month low of $433.00 and a 12-month high of $674.19.

Deere & Company (NYSE:DE) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, February 19th. The industrial products company reported $2.42 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.90 by $0.52. The company had revenue of $9.61 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $7.50 billion. Deere & Company had a net margin of 10.29% and a return on equity of 18.93%. The firm’s revenue was up 17.5% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter last year, the firm posted $3.19 earnings per share. On average, equities research analysts predict that Deere & Company will post 18.01 EPS for the current year.

Deere & Company Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, May 8th. Investors of record on Tuesday, March 31st were issued a $1.62 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Tuesday, March 31st. This represents a $6.48 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.2%. Deere & Company’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 36.53%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of analysts have recently commented on the stock. Barclays lifted their price target on shares of Deere & Company from $530.00 to $640.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research note on Tuesday, March 31st. Wall Street Zen upgraded shares of Deere & Company from a “sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Saturday, February 7th. Argus lifted their price target on shares of Deere & Company from $540.00 to $700.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Tuesday, March 3rd. BMO Capital Markets lifted their price target on shares of Deere & Company from $460.00 to $500.00 and gave the stock a “market perform” rating in a research note on Friday, February 20th. Finally, Citigroup reduced their price target on shares of Deere & Company from $675.00 to $625.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a research note on Monday, March 9th. Fifteen investment analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and nine have assigned a Hold rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the company currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $655.45.

Deere & Company Profile

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.