Nikko Asset Management Americas Inc. Decreases Holdings in Deere & Company (NYSE:DE)

Nikko Asset Management Americas Inc. reduced its holdings in Deere & Company (NYSE:DE - Free Report) by 12.2% during the fourth quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor owned 75,315 shares of the industrial products company's stock after selling 10,495 shares during the quarter. Nikko Asset Management Americas Inc.'s holdings in Deere & Company were worth $31,911,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other hedge funds and other institutional investors also recently made changes to their positions in the company. Everence Capital Management Inc. boosted its position in shares of Deere & Company by 148.3% in the fourth quarter. Everence Capital Management Inc. now owns 12,223 shares of the industrial products company's stock valued at $5,179,000 after acquiring an additional 7,300 shares during the period. Stockbridge Partners LLC grew its holdings in shares of Deere & Company by 157.5% during the third quarter. Stockbridge Partners LLC now owns 884,237 shares of the industrial products company's stock worth $369,019,000 after buying an additional 540,874 shares in the last quarter. Compass Financial Services Inc acquired a new stake in Deere & Company in the 4th quarter valued at approximately $254,000. Toronto Dominion Bank boosted its position in Deere & Company by 1.5% during the 3rd 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. Finally, Czech National Bank lifted its position in Deere & Company by 5.7% during the 4th quarter. Czech National Bank now owns 55,170 shares of the industrial products company's stock worth $23,376,000 after buying an additional 2,964 shares in the last quarter. 68.58% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

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Analyst Ratings Changes

DE has been the subject of several analyst reports. JPMorgan Chase & Co. lifted their price objective on shares of Deere & Company from $470.00 to $500.00 and gave the stock a "neutral" rating in a research note on Monday, February 10th. StockNews.com cut Deere & Company from a "hold" rating to a "sell" rating in a report on Saturday, March 1st. Evercore ISI upped their price target on Deere & Company from $437.00 to $455.00 and gave the company an "in-line" rating in a research report on Wednesday, February 19th. Baird R W cut shares of Deere & Company from a "strong-buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a report on Monday, March 3rd. Finally, Jefferies Financial Group downgraded Deere & Company from a "buy" rating to a "hold" rating and set a $510.00 price objective for the company. in a research note on Friday, December 6th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, thirteen have given a hold rating and eight have given a buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock has a consensus rating of "Hold" and an average target price of $460.00.

Insider Buying and Selling at Deere & Company

In related news, insider Rajesh Kalathur sold 24,580 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction 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 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 ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this link. Company insiders own 0.29% of the company's stock.

Deere & Company Stock Down 1.1 %

Shares of NYSE:DE traded down $5.12 during midday trading on Friday, hitting $471.90. 1,684,992 shares of the stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 1,362,992. The company has a market capitalization of $128.08 billion, a PE ratio of 20.92, a P/E/G ratio of 2.14 and a beta of 1.01. Deere & Company has a 52-week low of $340.20 and a 52-week high of $515.05. The business's fifty day simple moving average is $471.98 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $435.61. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.94, a quick ratio of 1.98 and a current ratio of 2.22.

Deere & Company (NYSE:DE - Get Free Report) last issued its earnings results on Thursday, February 13th. The industrial products company reported $3.19 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts' consensus estimates 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, research analysts predict that Deere & Company will post 19.32 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Deere & Company Announces Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, May 8th. Shareholders of record on Monday, March 31st will be issued a dividend of $1.62 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, March 31st. This represents a $6.48 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.37%. Deere & Company's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 28.72%.

Deere & Company Profile

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.