Patriot Investment Management Group Inc. Trims Stock Holdings in Deere & Company (NYSE:DE)

Patriot Investment Management Group Inc. reduced its stake in shares of Deere & Company (NYSE:DE) by 3.9% during the fourth quarter, Holdings Channel reports. The institutional investor owned 4,143 shares of the industrial products company’s stock after selling 169 shares during the period. Patriot Investment Management Group Inc.’s holdings in Deere & Company were worth $1,657,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission.

A number of other hedge funds also recently made changes to their positions in DE. Briaud Financial Planning Inc purchased a new stake in Deere & Company during the third quarter valued at approximately $25,000. Retirement Group LLC boosted its holdings in shares of Deere & Company by 264.7% in the 2nd quarter. Retirement Group LLC now owns 62 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $25,000 after buying an additional 45 shares in the last quarter. ZRC Wealth Management LLC purchased a new position in shares of Deere & Company in the 4th quarter worth approximately $28,000. Worth Asset Management LLC bought a new position in shares of Deere & Company during the 1st quarter worth approximately $28,000. Finally, Milestone Investment Advisors LLC purchased a new stake in Deere & Company during the third quarter valued at approximately $37,000. 68.58% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Deere & Company Stock Performance

Deere & Company stock traded up $0.49 during mid-day trading on Tuesday, hitting $398.52. The company had a trading volume of 1,049,847 shares, compared to its average volume of 1,533,417. The company has a market capitalization of $110.93 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 11.61, a P/E/G ratio of 1.50 and a beta of 1.03. Deere & Company has a 12-month low of $345.55 and a 12-month high of $450.00. The company’s fifty day moving average is $379.56 and its 200-day moving average is $381.33. The company has a current ratio of 2.05, a quick ratio of 1.81 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.81.

Deere & Company (NYSE:DE) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, February 15th. The industrial products company reported $6.23 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $5.19 by $1.04. Deere & Company had a net margin of 16.38% and a return on equity of 44.60%. The firm had revenue of $10.49 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $10.30 billion. During the same period in the prior year, the firm posted $6.55 earnings per share. The firm’s quarterly revenue was down 8.0% compared to the same quarter last year. Equities research analysts predict that Deere & Company will post 27.41 EPS for the current year.

Deere & Company Announces Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, May 8th. Investors of record on Friday, March 29th will be paid a $1.47 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Wednesday, March 27th. This represents a $5.88 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.48%. Deere & Company’s dividend payout ratio is presently 17.12%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several research firms have issued reports on DE. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft cut their price target on shares of Deere & Company from $425.00 to $401.00 and set a “hold” rating on the stock in a report on Friday, February 16th. Citigroup decreased their price target on Deere & Company from $450.00 to $435.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a research note on Friday, February 16th. Melius Research restated a “hold” rating on shares of Deere & Company in a research note on Monday, January 8th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. increased their price objective on shares of Deere & Company from $380.00 to $385.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research report on Monday, December 4th. Finally, Evercore ISI boosted their target price on shares of Deere & Company from $381.00 to $387.00 and gave the stock an “in-line” rating in a research report on Tuesday, February 20th. Ten analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and ten have given a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $431.69.

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.