Deere & Company (NYSE:DE) Shares Sold by Bank of Montreal Can

Bank of Montreal Can lowered its stake in shares of Deere & Company (NYSE:DE - Free Report) by 5.6% during the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 355,670 shares of the industrial products company's stock after selling 20,919 shares during the period. Bank of Montreal Can owned about 0.13% of Deere & Company worth $150,697,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission.

A number of other institutional investors have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the stock. Everence Capital Management Inc. raised its stake in shares of Deere & Company by 148.3% during the 4th quarter. Everence Capital Management Inc. now owns 12,223 shares of the industrial products company's stock worth $5,179,000 after buying an additional 7,300 shares during the last quarter. Compass Financial Services Inc purchased a new position in Deere & Company during the 4th quarter valued at about $254,000. Toronto Dominion Bank raised its position in Deere & Company by 1.5% during the third quarter. Toronto Dominion Bank now owns 86,952 shares of the industrial products company's stock worth $36,288,000 after acquiring an additional 1,291 shares during the last quarter. Czech National Bank lifted its holdings in shares of Deere & Company by 5.7% in the fourth quarter. Czech National Bank now owns 55,170 shares of the industrial products company's stock valued at $23,376,000 after purchasing an additional 2,964 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Banque Pictet & Cie SA grew its position in shares of Deere & Company by 2.0% in the fourth quarter. Banque Pictet & Cie SA now owns 78,274 shares of the industrial products company's stock valued at $33,165,000 after purchasing an additional 1,500 shares during the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 68.58% of the company's stock.

Remove Ads

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other Deere & Company news, insider Rajesh Kalathur sold 24,580 shares of the business's stock in a transaction on Tuesday, February 18th. The shares were sold at an average price of $500.61, for a total value of $12,304,993.80. Following the transaction, the insider now owns 74,878 shares in the company, valued at $37,484,675.58. The trade was a 24.71 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available through the SEC website. 0.29% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several brokerages recently issued reports on DE. StockNews.com downgraded Deere & Company from a "hold" rating to a "sell" rating in a research report on Sunday, April 6th. Oppenheimer boosted their price target on Deere & Company from $477.00 to $507.00 and gave the stock an "outperform" rating in a report on Tuesday, January 28th. Citigroup reduced their price objective on Deere & Company from $480.00 to $450.00 and set a "neutral" rating on the stock in a research report on Tuesday, April 8th. Argus set a $510.00 target price on shares of Deere & Company in a research note on Friday, March 7th. Finally, Evercore ISI upped their target price on shares of Deere & Company from $437.00 to $455.00 and gave the company an "in-line" rating in a report on Wednesday, February 19th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, thirteen have given a hold rating and eight have assigned a buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company currently has a consensus rating of "Hold" and an average price target of $457.26.

Deere & Company Trading Up 3.5 %

Shares of Deere & Company stock traded up $15.56 during trading hours on Friday, hitting $459.75. The company's stock had a trading volume of 1,245,049 shares, compared to its average volume of 1,433,099. The business has a fifty day moving average of $470.92 and a 200 day moving average of $443.51. Deere & Company has a 1-year low of $340.20 and a 1-year high of $515.05. The company has a quick ratio of 1.98, a current ratio of 2.22 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.94. The company has a market capitalization of $124.78 billion, a PE ratio of 20.38, a P/E/G ratio of 2.14 and a beta of 1.00.

Deere & Company (NYSE:DE - Get Free Report) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, February 13th. The industrial products company reported $3.19 earnings per share (EPS) 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%. As a group, equities analysts forecast that Deere & Company will post 19.32 EPS for the current 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 given a dividend of $1.62 per share. This represents a $6.48 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.41%. The ex-dividend date is Monday, March 31st. Deere & Company's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 28.72%.

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.