RFG Bristol Wealth Advisors LLC Makes New $539,000 Investment in Deere & Company (NYSE:DE)

RFG Bristol Wealth Advisors LLC bought a new position in shares of Deere & Company (NYSE:DE - Free Report) during the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor bought 1,272 shares of the industrial products company's stock, valued at approximately $539,000.

Several other large investors have also recently bought and sold shares of the company. Public Sector Pension Investment Board increased its stake in Deere & Company by 14.2% in the 3rd quarter. Public Sector Pension Investment Board now owns 10,471 shares of the industrial products company's stock worth $4,370,000 after acquiring an additional 1,300 shares during the last quarter. Erste Asset Management GmbH purchased a new position in shares of Deere & Company during the third quarter worth about $6,790,000. Benjamin Edwards Inc. increased its position in shares of Deere & Company by 125.7% in the third quarter. Benjamin Edwards Inc. now owns 31,406 shares of the industrial products company's stock worth $13,153,000 after purchasing an additional 17,490 shares during the last quarter. Ascent Group LLC raised its stake in Deere & Company by 4.4% in the third quarter. Ascent Group LLC now owns 1,691 shares of the industrial products company's stock valued at $706,000 after purchasing an additional 71 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Hilltop Holdings Inc. lifted its position in Deere & Company by 7.6% during the third quarter. Hilltop Holdings Inc. now owns 2,472 shares of the industrial products company's stock valued at $1,032,000 after purchasing an additional 175 shares during the last quarter. 68.58% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Remove Ads

Insider Activity

In other news, insider Rajesh Kalathur sold 24,580 shares of the company's stock in a transaction dated 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 sale, the insider now directly owns 74,878 shares of the company's stock, valued at $37,484,675.58. This represents a 24.71 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through the SEC website. 0.29% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Deere & Company Trading Down 3.8 %

Deere & Company stock traded down $17.20 during mid-day trading on Friday, reaching $430.25. 3,609,575 shares of the company traded hands, compared to its average volume of 1,417,940. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.94, a current ratio of 2.22 and a quick ratio of 1.98. Deere & Company has a 52-week low of $340.20 and a 52-week high of $515.05. The firm has a market capitalization of $116.78 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 19.07, a P/E/G ratio of 2.14 and a beta of 1.00. The firm's 50 day moving average price is $476.55 and its 200 day moving average price is $442.09.

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 net margin of 12.94% and a return on equity of 27.31%. On average, analysts anticipate that Deere & Company will post 19.32 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Deere & Company Announces Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, May 8th. Stockholders of record on Monday, March 31st will be given a $1.62 dividend. This represents a $6.48 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.51%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, March 31st. Deere & Company's dividend payout ratio is currently 28.72%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several analysts have recently weighed in on the stock. JPMorgan Chase & Co. raised their price objective on shares of Deere & Company from $470.00 to $500.00 and gave the company a "neutral" rating in a research report on Monday, February 10th. Citigroup increased their price target on shares of Deere & Company from $430.00 to $480.00 and gave the company a "neutral" rating in a research report on Friday, February 14th. Evercore ISI boosted their price objective on shares of Deere & Company from $437.00 to $455.00 and gave the stock an "in-line" rating in a report on Wednesday, February 19th. Baird R W cut shares of Deere & Company from a "strong-buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a research report on Monday, March 3rd. Finally, Oppenheimer upped their price target on shares of Deere & Company from $477.00 to $507.00 and gave the company an "outperform" rating in a research report on Tuesday, January 28th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, thirteen have issued a hold rating and eight have issued a buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, Deere & Company presently has a consensus rating of "Hold" and an average target price of $460.00.

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.