Hillsdale Investment Management Inc. Trims Stock Holdings in Deere & Company (NYSE:DE)

Hillsdale Investment Management Inc. lessened its position in shares of Deere & Company (NYSE:DE) by 29.3% during the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the SEC. The fund owned 555 shares of the industrial products company’s stock after selling 230 shares during the quarter. Hillsdale Investment Management Inc.’s holdings in Deere & Company were worth $222,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other hedge funds have also modified their holdings of DE. Briaud Financial Planning Inc acquired a new stake in Deere & Company during the 3rd quarter worth about $25,000. Rakuten Securities Inc. purchased a new position in Deere & Company during the fourth quarter valued at approximately $28,000. Naples Money Management LLC acquired a new position in Deere & Company in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $29,000. Private Wealth Management Group LLC purchased a new stake in Deere & Company in the 4th quarter worth approximately $29,000. Finally, Bfsg LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Deere & Company during the 4th quarter worth approximately $30,000. 68.58% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several equities analysts recently issued reports on DE shares. DA Davidson decreased their target price on shares of Deere & Company from $483.00 to $465.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a research note on Monday. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft lowered their target price on shares of Deere & Company from $425.00 to $401.00 and set a “hold” rating on the stock in a research note on Friday, February 16th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. cut their price target on Deere & Company from $425.00 to $385.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a research note on Friday, May 17th. Morgan Stanley increased their price target on Deere & Company from $430.00 to $450.00 in a research report on Wednesday, May 15th. Finally, Evercore ISI boosted their price objective on Deere & Company from $381.00 to $387.00 and gave the company an “in-line” rating in a research report on Tuesday, February 20th. Ten research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and ten have assigned a buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $433.53.

Deere & Company Price Performance

NYSE:DE opened at $386.82 on Wednesday. Deere & Company has a one year low of $345.55 and a one year high of $450.00. The stock has a market cap of $107.68 billion, a PE ratio of 11.64, a P/E/G ratio of 1.51 and a beta of 1.04. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.81, a quick ratio of 1.80 and a current ratio of 2.01. The stock has a 50 day moving average price of $399.81 and a 200 day moving average price of $386.47.

Deere & Company (NYSE:DE) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, May 16th. The industrial products company reported $8.53 EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $7.86 by $0.67. Deere & Company had a return on equity of 42.26% and a net margin of 16.15%. The business had revenue of $13.61 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $13.29 billion. During the same quarter in the previous year, the firm earned $9.65 EPS. The company’s quarterly revenue was down 15.4% compared to the same quarter last year. Equities research analysts expect that Deere & Company will post 26.61 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Deere & Company Announces Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, May 8th. Stockholders of record on Friday, March 29th were given a dividend of $1.47 per share. This represents a $5.88 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.52%. The ex-dividend date was Wednesday, March 27th. Deere & Company’s payout ratio is presently 17.70%.

Deere & Company Profile

Deere & Company engages in the manufacture and distribution of various equipment worldwide. The company operates through four segments: Production and Precision Agriculture, Small Agriculture and Turf, Construction and Forestry, and Financial Services. The Production and Precision Agriculture segment provides large and medium tractors, combines, cotton pickers and strippers, sugarcane harvesters and loaders, harvesting front-end equipment, pull-behind scrapers, and tillage and seeding equipment, as well as application equipment, including sprayers and nutrient management, and soil preparation machinery for grain growers.