Compass Capital Management Inc. Boosts Stake in Deere & Company $DE

Compass Capital Management Inc. lifted its holdings in Deere & Company (NYSE:DE) by 180.9% during the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 15,223 shares of the industrial products company’s stock after buying an additional 9,803 shares during the period. Compass Capital Management Inc.’s holdings in Deere & Company were worth $7,087,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission.

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently modified their holdings of DE. Strategic Advocates LLC purchased a new position in shares of Deere & Company in the third quarter worth about $25,000. Key Capital Management INC purchased a new position in shares of Deere & Company in the fourth quarter worth about $27,000. McIlrath & Eck LLC acquired a new stake in Deere & Company during the fourth quarter worth about $30,000. Wealth Watch Advisors INC acquired a new stake in Deere & Company during the third quarter worth about $32,000. Finally, Tucker Asset Management LLC acquired a new stake in Deere & Company during the fourth quarter worth about $34,000. 68.58% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

DE has been the subject of several recent analyst reports. Barclays raised their price objective on shares of Deere & Company from $530.00 to $640.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research report on Tuesday, March 31st. Raymond James Financial cut their price objective on shares of Deere & Company from $765.00 to $700.00 and set an “outperform” rating for the company in a research report on Friday, May 22nd. Jefferies Financial Group upgraded shares of Deere & Company from an “underperform” rating to a “hold” rating and set a $550.00 price objective for the company in a research report on Wednesday, April 8th. UBS Group raised their price objective on shares of Deere & Company from $535.00 to $775.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Friday, February 20th. Finally, Robert W. Baird cut their price objective on shares of Deere & Company from $580.00 to $525.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a research report on Friday, May 22nd. Fourteen research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and nine have given a Hold rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $639.58.

Deere & Company Price Performance

Shares of DE opened at $569.09 on Friday. Deere & Company has a 1-year low of $433.00 and a 1-year high of $674.19. The stock has a market cap of $153.62 billion, a PE ratio of 32.24, a P/E/G ratio of 2.07 and a beta of 0.92. The firm has a 50-day simple moving average of $573.17 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $548.69. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.54, a current ratio of 2.18 and a quick ratio of 1.95.

Deere & Company (NYSE:DE) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, May 21st. The industrial products company reported $6.55 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $5.70 by $0.85. Deere & Company had a net margin of 10.09% and a return on equity of 18.25%. The business had revenue of $13.37 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $11.55 billion. During the same period last year, the business earned $6.64 earnings per share. The business’s revenue for the quarter was up 5.4% on a year-over-year basis. As a group, analysts forecast that Deere & Company will post 18.13 EPS for the current year.

Deere & Company Dividend Announcement

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

Deere & 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.