Deere & Company (NYSE:DE) Shares Sold by Sterling Financial Planning Inc.

Sterling Financial Planning Inc. reduced its holdings in Deere & Company (NYSE:DE) by 5.8% during the fourth quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor owned 994 shares of the industrial products company’s stock after selling 61 shares during the quarter. Sterling Financial Planning Inc.’s holdings in Deere & Company were worth $421,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds have also added to or reduced their stakes in DE. Ledyard National Bank lifted its stake in Deere & Company by 3.3% during the third quarter. Ledyard National Bank now owns 1,231 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $514,000 after buying an additional 39 shares in the last quarter. Calton & Associates Inc. acquired a new stake in Deere & Company during the 3rd quarter valued at $270,000. Fortis Group Advisors LLC lifted its holdings in shares of Deere & Company by 357.8% in the third quarter. Fortis Group Advisors LLC now owns 618 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $258,000 after purchasing an additional 483 shares in the last quarter. Sequoia Financial Advisors LLC boosted its position in shares of Deere & Company by 153.4% in the third quarter. Sequoia Financial Advisors LLC now owns 15,077 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $6,292,000 after buying an additional 9,128 shares during the period. Finally, Eastern Bank grew its holdings in shares of Deere & Company by 293.7% during the third quarter. Eastern Bank now owns 4,059 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $1,694,000 after buying an additional 3,028 shares in the last quarter. 68.58% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Insider Activity

In other news, insider Rajesh Kalathur sold 24,580 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, February 18th. The shares were sold at an average price of $500.61, for a total transaction of $12,304,993.80. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider now owns 74,878 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $37,484,675.58. This represents a 24.71 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through the SEC website. 0.29% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

Deere & Company Stock Performance

NYSE:DE opened at $509.54 on Thursday. The firm has a market capitalization of $138.77 billion, a PE ratio of 22.59, a PEG ratio of 2.96 and a beta of 0.98. Deere & Company has a 1 year low of $340.20 and a 1 year high of $515.05. The company has a current ratio of 2.22, a quick ratio of 1.98 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.94. The firm’s fifty day simple moving average is $449.95 and its 200 day simple moving average is $419.37.

Deere & Company (NYSE:DE) last released its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, February 13th. The industrial products company reported $3.19 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $3.14 by $0.05. Deere & Company had a net margin of 12.94% and a return on equity of 27.31%. On average, sell-side analysts anticipate that Deere & Company will post 19.35 EPS for the current year.

Deere & Company Increases Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, February 10th. Shareholders of record on Tuesday, December 31st were given a $1.62 dividend. 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 1.27%. The ex-dividend date was Tuesday, December 31st. Deere & Company’s payout ratio is currently 28.72%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of equities analysts have recently weighed in on DE shares. Barclays upped their target price on Deere & Company from $400.00 to $475.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a report on Friday, November 22nd. Evercore ISI upped their price target on shares of Deere & Company from $437.00 to $455.00 and gave the stock an “in-line” rating in a research note on Wednesday. Citigroup boosted their target price on Deere & Company from $430.00 to $480.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research note on Friday, February 14th. Oppenheimer raised their price target on Deere & Company from $477.00 to $507.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research note on Tuesday, January 28th. Finally, UBS Group boosted their price target on Deere & Company from $404.00 to $462.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research note on Friday, November 22nd. Eleven investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and eight have issued a buy rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, Deere & Company currently has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $454.65.

About Deere & Company

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.