Deere & Company $DE Shares Purchased by ABN AMRO Bank N.V.

ABN AMRO Bank N.V. boosted its holdings in shares of Deere & Company (NYSE:DE) by 3.6% in the 3rd quarter, Holdings Channel.com reports. The fund owned 35,803 shares of the industrial products company’s stock after buying an additional 1,258 shares during the quarter. ABN AMRO Bank N.V.’s holdings in Deere & Company were worth $16,291,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently added to or reduced their stakes in DE. Mid American Wealth Advisory Group Inc. purchased a new position in Deere & Company during the second quarter worth about $25,000. Howard Hughes Medical Institute acquired a new position in shares of Deere & Company in the 2nd quarter worth approximately $27,000. Activest Wealth Management lifted its holdings in shares of Deere & Company by 69.2% in the 3rd quarter. Activest Wealth Management now owns 66 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $30,000 after acquiring an additional 27 shares during the last quarter. Center for Financial Planning Inc. boosted its position in shares of Deere & Company by 406.7% during the 2nd quarter. Center for Financial Planning Inc. now owns 76 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $39,000 after purchasing an additional 61 shares during the period. Finally, United Community Bank increased its holdings in Deere & Company by 67.3% in the 3rd quarter. United Community Bank now owns 92 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $42,000 after purchasing an additional 37 shares during the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 68.58% of the company’s stock.

Insider Activity

In other Deere & Company news, insider Cory J. Reed sold 12,000 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, January 14th. The shares were sold at an average price of $510.00, for a total value of $6,120,000.00. Following the transaction, the insider directly owned 20,792 shares in the company, valued at $10,603,920. This represents a 36.59% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available at this hyperlink. Also, CEO John C. May II sold 41,472 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, January 8th. The stock was sold at an average price of $501.49, for a total transaction of $20,797,793.28. Following the sale, the chief executive officer directly owned 117,970 shares in the company, valued at approximately $59,160,775.30. The trade was a 26.01% decrease in their position. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. Over the last ninety days, insiders have sold 64,578 shares of company stock valued at $32,471,682. Insiders own 0.29% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of research firms have commented on DE. Daiwa Capital Markets decreased their price target on Deere & Company from $530.00 to $520.00 and set an “outperform” rating on the stock in a research note on Tuesday, December 2nd. Jefferies Financial Group raised their target price on Deere & Company from $440.00 to $475.00 and gave the company a “hold” rating in a report on Tuesday, December 9th. Zacks Research upgraded shares of Deere & Company from a “strong sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Wednesday, December 3rd. Royal Bank Of Canada reduced their price target on shares of Deere & Company from $542.00 to $541.00 and set an “outperform” rating on the stock in a research report on Friday, November 28th. Finally, Wolfe Research lifted their price objective on shares of Deere & Company from $520.00 to $550.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a report on Friday, January 2nd. Fifteen equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and nine have assigned a Hold rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, Deere & Company presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $524.20.

Deere & Company Stock Up 4.3%

DE stock opened at $568.20 on Thursday. The company’s 50 day moving average price is $490.96 and its 200 day moving average price is $483.28. The firm has a market capitalization of $154.02 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 30.70, a PEG ratio of 2.17 and a beta of 1.02. Deere & Company has a fifty-two week low of $404.42 and a fifty-two week high of $571.56. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.68, a quick ratio of 2.01 and a current ratio of 2.22.

Deere & Company (NYSE:DE) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, November 26th. The industrial products company reported $3.93 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $3.96 by ($0.03). The firm had revenue of $12.39 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $9.77 billion. Deere & Company had a return on equity of 20.54% and a net margin of 11.00%.The firm’s revenue was up 14.1% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm earned $4.55 EPS. On average, equities research analysts anticipate that Deere & Company will post 19.32 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Deere & Company Announces Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, February 9th. Shareholders of record on Wednesday, December 31st will be issued a dividend of $1.62 per share. This represents a $6.48 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.1%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Wednesday, December 31st. Deere & Company’s payout ratio is 35.01%.

About Deere & Company

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.