New York State Common Retirement Fund Has $143.26 Million Stake in Deere & Company $DE

New York State Common Retirement Fund reduced its stake in shares of Deere & Company (NYSE:DE) by 16.8% in the 3rd quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The fund owned 313,303 shares of the industrial products company’s stock after selling 63,200 shares during the period. New York State Common Retirement Fund’s holdings in Deere & Company were worth $143,261,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other institutional investors have also recently made changes to their positions in DE. Norges Bank acquired a new stake in shares of Deere & Company in the second quarter valued at about $1,578,243,000. Marshall Wace LLP boosted its holdings in Deere & Company by 573.9% in the second quarter. Marshall Wace LLP now owns 842,882 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $428,597,000 after acquiring an additional 717,808 shares during the last quarter. TD Asset Management Inc increased its position in Deere & Company by 132.0% during the 2nd quarter. TD Asset Management Inc now owns 721,638 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $366,946,000 after purchasing an additional 410,636 shares during the period. Laurel Wealth Advisors LLC raised its holdings in Deere & Company by 50,691.9% during the 2nd quarter. Laurel Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 332,179 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $168,910,000 after purchasing an additional 331,525 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Vanguard Group Inc. raised its holdings in Deere & Company by 1.4% during the 2nd 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 last quarter. Institutional investors own 68.58% of the company’s stock.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, insider Cory J. Reed sold 12,000 shares of the stock in a transaction on Wednesday, January 14th. The stock was sold at an average price of $510.00, for a total value of $6,120,000.00. Following the transaction, the insider directly owned 20,792 shares in the company, valued at $10,603,920. This trade represents a 36.59% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this link. Also, CEO John C. May II sold 41,472 shares of Deere & Company stock in a transaction on Thursday, January 8th. The shares were sold at an average price of $501.49, for a total transaction of $20,797,793.28. Following the completion of the sale, the chief executive officer directly owned 117,970 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $59,160,775.30. The trade was a 26.01% decrease in their position. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. Insiders have sold 64,578 shares of company stock worth $32,471,682 over the last ninety days. 0.29% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of equities research analysts have recently commented on DE shares. Daiwa Capital Markets reduced their price objective on shares of Deere & Company from $530.00 to $520.00 and set an “outperform” rating on the stock in a research note on Tuesday, December 2nd. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods reaffirmed an “outperform” rating on shares of Deere & Company in a research report on Monday, December 1st. Jefferies Financial Group increased their price target on Deere & Company from $440.00 to $475.00 and gave the stock a “hold” rating in a report on Tuesday, December 9th. Wolfe Research boosted their price objective on Deere & Company from $520.00 to $550.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research note on Friday, January 2nd. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company initiated coverage on Deere & Company in a research note on Thursday, November 13th. They set an “overweight” rating and a $543.00 target price for the company. Fifteen equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and nine have assigned a Hold rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat, the stock presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $524.20.

Deere & Company Price Performance

Shares of NYSE DE opened at $524.44 on Thursday. The firm has a market capitalization of $142.16 billion, a P/E ratio of 28.33, a P/E/G ratio of 2.07 and a beta of 1.00. The firm’s 50-day moving average price is $485.34 and its 200-day moving average price is $482.00. The company has a current ratio of 2.22, a quick ratio of 2.01 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.68. Deere & Company has a 1-year low of $404.42 and a 1-year high of $533.78.

Deere & Company (NYSE:DE) last issued its earnings results on Wednesday, November 26th. The industrial products company reported $3.93 EPS for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $3.96 by ($0.03). Deere & Company had a net margin of 11.00% and a return on equity of 20.54%. The firm had revenue of $12.39 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $9.77 billion. During the same quarter in the prior year, the business earned $4.55 earnings per share. The business’s quarterly revenue was up 14.1% on a year-over-year basis. Equities research 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 disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, February 9th. Stockholders of record on Wednesday, December 31st will be issued a dividend of $1.62 per share. The ex-dividend date is Wednesday, December 31st. This represents a $6.48 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.2%. Deere & Company’s payout ratio is currently 35.01%.

Deere & Company Company Profile

Deere & Company, commonly known by its brand John Deere, is a global manufacturer of agricultural, construction and forestry machinery, as well as turf care equipment and power systems. Founded in 1837 by blacksmith John Deere—who developed a polished steel plow to improve tillage in tough prairie soils—the company is headquartered in Moline, Illinois, and has grown into one of the largest and most recognizable names in equipment manufacturing worldwide.

The company’s principal businesses include a broad portfolio of agricultural equipment such as tractors, combines, planters, sprayers, harvesters and tillage implements, complemented by precision agriculture technologies and telematics that support farm management, yield optimization and equipment connectivity.