Clearbridge Investments LLC Decreases Holdings in Deere & Company $DE

Clearbridge Investments LLC cut its holdings in shares of Deere & Company (NYSE:DE) by 4.9% in the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund owned 365,289 shares of the industrial products company’s stock after selling 18,646 shares during the quarter. Clearbridge Investments LLC owned approximately 0.13% of Deere & Company worth $170,068,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other large investors have also recently made changes to their positions in the business. Vanguard Group Inc. increased its holdings in Deere & Company by 0.9% in the 4th quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 22,583,185 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $10,514,053,000 after acquiring an additional 198,332 shares during the last quarter. Capital World Investors increased its holdings in Deere & Company by 53.9% in the 4th quarter. Capital World Investors now owns 9,592,004 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $4,465,906,000 after acquiring an additional 3,358,264 shares during the last quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC increased its holdings in Deere & Company by 0.3% in the 4th quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 5,600,552 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $2,609,149,000 after acquiring an additional 17,269 shares during the last quarter. Norges Bank purchased a new stake in Deere & Company in the 4th quarter worth about $1,715,633,000. Finally, Fisher Asset Management LLC increased its holdings in Deere & Company by 4.8% in the 4th quarter. Fisher Asset Management LLC now owns 2,853,156 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $1,328,344,000 after acquiring an additional 131,138 shares during the last quarter. 68.58% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Deere & Company Stock Up 0.1%

Shares of NYSE DE opened at $583.80 on Monday. Deere & Company has a 52 week low of $433.00 and a 52 week high of $674.19. The business has a 50-day simple moving average of $572.86 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $546.09. The company has a quick ratio of 1.95, a current ratio of 2.18 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.54. The company has a market cap of $157.59 billion, a P/E ratio of 33.08, a P/E/G ratio of 2.16 and a beta of 0.92.

Deere & Company (NYSE:DE) last issued its earnings results on Thursday, May 21st. The industrial products company reported $6.55 EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $5.70 by $0.85. Deere & Company had a return on equity of 18.25% and a net margin of 10.09%.The business had revenue of $13.37 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $11.55 billion. During the same quarter last year, the company earned $6.64 EPS. The firm’s revenue was up 5.4% compared to the same quarter last year. Research analysts anticipate that Deere & Company will post 18.08 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Deere & Company Dividend Announcement

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, August 10th. Shareholders of record on Tuesday, June 30th will be paid a $1.62 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Tuesday, June 30th. This represents a $6.48 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.1%. Deere & Company’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 36.71%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several brokerages recently weighed in on DE. Wolfe Research lifted their price objective on Deere & Company from $550.00 to $660.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a report on Tuesday, March 31st. Bank of America decreased their price objective on Deere & Company from $672.00 to $607.50 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a report on Friday, May 22nd. UBS Group lifted their price objective on Deere & Company from $535.00 to $775.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Friday, February 20th. Royal Bank Of Canada reissued an “outperform” rating and issued a $752.00 price objective on shares of Deere & Company in a report on Monday, June 1st. Finally, Oppenheimer reissued an “outperform” rating and issued a $680.00 price objective (down from $715.00) on shares of Deere & Company in a report on Wednesday, May 27th. Fourteen investment analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and nine have issued a Hold rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $639.58.

Deere & Company Company Profile

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.