Allstate Corp Makes New $3.29 Million Investment in Deere & Company (NYSE:DE)

Allstate Corp purchased a new stake in Deere & Company (NYSE:DE) in the 4th quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the SEC. The firm purchased 7,759 shares of the industrial products company’s stock, valued at approximately $3,287,000.

Other institutional investors have also recently modified their holdings of the company. Wellington Management Group LLP increased its holdings in Deere & Company by 32.0% in the third quarter. Wellington Management Group LLP now owns 7,352,465 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $3,068,404,000 after buying an additional 1,782,984 shares in the last quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC grew its holdings in shares of Deere & Company by 0.6% in the 3rd quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 5,208,368 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $2,168,737,000 after acquiring an additional 31,459 shares during the period. Norges Bank purchased a new position in Deere & Company in the 4th quarter valued at approximately $1,244,094,000. Fisher Asset Management LLC raised its holdings in Deere & Company by 8.1% during the fourth quarter. Fisher Asset Management LLC now owns 2,155,613 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $913,334,000 after purchasing an additional 160,956 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Bank of New York Mellon Corp boosted its position in Deere & Company by 5.5% during the fourth quarter. Bank of New York Mellon Corp now owns 2,063,898 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $874,473,000 after purchasing an additional 107,544 shares in the last quarter. 68.58% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several research analysts have recently issued reports on the company. Evercore ISI lifted their price target on Deere & Company from $437.00 to $455.00 and gave the stock an “in-line” rating in a research note on Wednesday, February 19th. Jefferies Financial Group downgraded shares of Deere & Company from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating and set a $510.00 price target on the stock. in a report on Friday, December 6th. Argus set a $510.00 price objective on shares of Deere & Company in a research note on Friday, March 7th. Robert W. Baird restated a “neutral” rating and set a $501.00 price objective on shares of Deere & Company in a research report on Monday, March 3rd. Finally, StockNews.com upgraded Deere & Company from a “sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Saturday. Fourteen analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and eight have issued a buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, the stock has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $460.00.

Deere & Company Stock Performance

Deere & Company stock opened at $465.27 on Friday. Deere & Company has a 12-month low of $340.20 and a 12-month high of $515.05. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.94, a current ratio of 2.22 and a quick ratio of 1.98. The company has a market capitalization of $126.28 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 20.62, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.14 and a beta of 1.01. The firm’s fifty day moving average price is $477.28 and its 200 day moving average price is $439.76.

Deere & Company (NYSE:DE) last announced its earnings results on Thursday, February 13th. The industrial products company reported $3.19 earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $3.14 by $0.05. Deere & Company had a return on equity of 27.31% and a net margin of 12.94%. On average, research analysts forecast that Deere & Company will post 19.32 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Deere & Company Announces Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, May 8th. Investors of record on Monday, March 31st will be paid a $1.62 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Monday, March 31st. This represents a $6.48 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.39%. Deere & Company’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 28.72%.

Insider Activity at Deere & Company

In other news, insider Rajesh Kalathur sold 24,580 shares of Deere & Company stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, February 18th. The stock was sold at an average price of $500.61, for a total value of $12,304,993.80. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider now owns 74,878 shares in the company, valued at approximately $37,484,675.58. This trade represents a 24.71 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through the SEC website. 0.29% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

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.