Deere & Company $DE Stock Position Reduced by Gabelli Funds LLC

Gabelli Funds LLC decreased its position in Deere & Company (NYSE:DE) by 3.4% in the 2nd quarter, Holdings Channel.com reports. The fund owned 259,022 shares of the industrial products company’s stock after selling 9,092 shares during the period. Deere & Company makes up 0.9% of Gabelli Funds LLC’s investment portfolio, making the stock its 16th largest position. Gabelli Funds LLC’s holdings in Deere & Company were worth $131,710,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission.

Other institutional investors and hedge funds have also made changes to their positions in the company. Vanguard Group Inc. boosted its holdings in Deere & Company by 1.4% in the second quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 22,372,671 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $11,376,279,000 after purchasing an additional 309,081 shares during the period. Price T Rowe Associates Inc. MD lifted its position in shares of Deere & Company by 4.3% in the 1st quarter. Price T Rowe Associates Inc. MD now owns 6,876,013 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $3,227,258,000 after buying an additional 286,253 shares during the last quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC lifted its position in shares of Deere & Company by 2.1% in the 2nd quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 5,541,778 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $2,810,807,000 after buying an additional 111,627 shares during the last quarter. Norges Bank acquired a new position in shares of Deere & Company in the 2nd quarter valued at about $1,578,243,000. Finally, Fisher Asset Management LLC grew its position in shares of Deere & Company by 10.1% during the 2nd quarter. Fisher Asset Management LLC now owns 2,580,228 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $1,312,020,000 after buying an additional 236,406 shares during the last quarter. 68.58% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of equities analysts have issued reports on DE shares. Wall Street Zen cut shares of Deere & Company from a “hold” rating to a “sell” rating in a report on Friday, November 28th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. cut their price target on Deere & Company from $495.00 to $480.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a report on Tuesday, October 14th. Daiwa Capital Markets lowered their price objective on Deere & Company from $530.00 to $520.00 and set an “outperform” rating for the company in a research note on Tuesday, December 2nd. DA Davidson reaffirmed a “buy” rating and issued a $580.00 target price on shares of Deere & Company in a research report on Monday, December 1st. Finally, Keefe, Bruyette & Woods reiterated an “outperform” rating on shares of Deere & Company in a research note on Monday, December 1st. One analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, fifteen have given a Buy rating and ten have assigned a Hold rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the company currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $518.95.

Insider Transactions at Deere & Company

In other Deere & Company news, CEO John C. May II sold 11,106 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, November 25th. The shares were sold at an average price of $500.08, for a total transaction of $5,553,888.48. Following the transaction, the chief executive officer owned 112,453 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $56,235,496.24. This trade represents a 8.99% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this hyperlink. 0.29% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Deere & Company Stock Down 1.6%

DE opened at $475.13 on Friday. Deere & Company has a 12 month low of $403.01 and a 12 month high of $533.78. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.68, a current ratio of 2.22 and a quick ratio of 2.01. The stock has a market cap of $128.44 billion, a P/E ratio of 25.67, a P/E/G ratio of 1.75 and a beta of 1.00. The stock’s 50 day moving average price is $467.81 and its 200 day moving average price is $488.96.

Deere & Company (NYSE:DE) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, November 26th. The industrial products company reported $3.93 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $3.96 by ($0.03). Deere & Company had a return on equity of 20.54% and a net margin of 11.00%.The business had revenue of $12.39 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $9.77 billion. During the same quarter last year, the firm posted $4.55 EPS. The company’s revenue was up 14.1% compared to the same quarter last year. As a group, research analysts predict that Deere & Company will post 19.32 earnings per share for the current year.

Deere & Company Announces Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, February 9th. Investors of record on Wednesday, December 31st will be issued a $1.62 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Wednesday, December 31st. This represents a $6.48 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.4%. Deere & Company’s dividend payout ratio is presently 35.01%.

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.