Deere & Company (NYSE:DE) Sees Large Growth in Short Interest

Deere & Company (NYSE:DE) was the recipient of a large increase in short interest in the month of December. As of December 31st, there was short interest totalling 5,340,000 shares, an increase of 7.9% from the December 15th total of 4,950,000 shares. Based on an average daily volume of 1,180,000 shares, the short-interest ratio is presently 4.5 days. Approximately 2.1% of the shares of the company are sold short.

Deere & Company Stock Performance

NYSE:DE opened at $456.57 on Tuesday. The company has a current ratio of 2.09, a quick ratio of 1.90 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.89. The firm has a 50-day moving average price of $431.48 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $402.53. Deere & Company has a twelve month low of $340.20 and a twelve month high of $469.39. The company has a market capitalization of $124.00 billion, a P/E ratio of 17.83, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.74 and a beta of 0.98.

Deere & Company (NYSE:DE) last posted its earnings results on Thursday, November 21st. The industrial products company reported $4.55 earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $3.89 by $0.66. Deere & Company had a net margin of 13.73% and a return on equity of 31.32%. The firm had revenue of $9.28 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $9.20 billion. During the same period last year, the firm posted $8.26 EPS. The firm’s revenue for the quarter was down 32.8% on a year-over-year basis. As a group, research analysts expect that Deere & Company will post 19.57 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Deere & Company Increases Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, February 10th. Shareholders of record on Tuesday, December 31st will be issued a dividend of $1.62 per share. This is an increase from Deere & Company’s previous quarterly dividend of $1.47. This represents a $6.48 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.42%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Tuesday, December 31st. Deere & Company’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 25.31%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of analysts recently weighed in on the stock. Truist Financial increased their price target on shares of Deere & Company from $538.00 to $550.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Thursday, December 19th. Citigroup decreased their price target on shares of Deere & Company from $470.00 to $430.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a research note on Tuesday, January 14th. Barclays increased their price target on shares of Deere & Company from $400.00 to $475.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research note on Friday, November 22nd. Morgan Stanley increased their price target on shares of Deere & Company from $401.00 to $450.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research note on Monday, November 25th. Finally, Oppenheimer increased their price target on shares of Deere & Company from $448.00 to $477.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research note on Friday, November 22nd. Eleven research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and nine have assigned a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the company has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $442.83.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Deere & Company

A number of hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently modified their holdings of the company. Secure Asset Management LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Deere & Company during the fourth quarter worth about $358,000. Avior Wealth Management LLC grew its holdings in shares of Deere & Company by 2.0% during the fourth quarter. Avior Wealth Management LLC now owns 4,770 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $2,021,000 after buying an additional 93 shares in the last quarter. Raleigh Capital Management Inc. grew its holdings in shares of Deere & Company by 182.4% during the fourth quarter. Raleigh Capital Management Inc. now owns 209 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $89,000 after buying an additional 135 shares in the last quarter. Wesbanco Bank Inc. grew its holdings in shares of Deere & Company by 0.5% during the fourth quarter. Wesbanco Bank Inc. now owns 18,735 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $7,938,000 after buying an additional 98 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Albion Financial Group UT acquired a new stake in shares of Deere & Company in the fourth quarter worth approximately $111,000. 68.58% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

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.