O Shaughnessy Asset Management LLC Decreases Stock Position in Deere & Company $DE

O Shaughnessy Asset Management LLC trimmed its stake in shares of Deere & Company (NYSE:DE) by 3.2% in the 4th quarter, HoldingsChannel reports. The firm owned 44,561 shares of the industrial products company’s stock after selling 1,455 shares during the period. O Shaughnessy Asset Management LLC’s holdings in Deere & Company were worth $20,746,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other large investors also recently bought and sold shares of the company. Strategic Advocates LLC purchased a new position in shares of Deere & Company in the 3rd quarter valued at about $25,000. Key Capital Management INC purchased a new stake in shares of Deere & Company during the fourth quarter worth approximately $27,000. McIlrath & Eck LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Deere & Company during the fourth quarter worth approximately $30,000. Wealth Watch Advisors INC acquired a new stake in Deere & Company in the third quarter valued at approximately $32,000. Finally, Tucker Asset Management LLC purchased a new position in Deere & Company in the fourth quarter worth approximately $34,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 68.58% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of equities research analysts have commented on DE shares. Sanford C. Bernstein increased their price objective on shares of Deere & Company from $521.00 to $615.00 and gave the company a “market perform” rating in a research report on Friday, February 20th. Weiss Ratings upgraded shares of Deere & Company from a “hold (c)” rating to a “hold (c+)” rating in a research note on Thursday, May 21st. UBS Group increased their target price on Deere & Company from $535.00 to $775.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Friday, February 20th. Wolfe Research raised their price target on Deere & Company from $550.00 to $660.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research note on Tuesday, March 31st. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company lifted their price target on Deere & Company from $543.00 to $750.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a report on Friday, February 20th. Fourteen research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and nine have assigned a Hold rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $639.58.

Deere & Company Price Performance

Shares of DE opened at $573.50 on Tuesday. Deere & Company has a 1-year low of $433.00 and a 1-year high of $674.19. The stock has a market cap of $154.81 billion, a PE ratio of 32.49, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.16 and a beta of 0.92. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.54, a current ratio of 2.18 and a quick ratio of 1.95. The firm has a fifty day moving average price of $572.71 and a 200 day moving average price of $546.79.

Deere & Company (NYSE:DE) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, May 21st. The industrial products company reported $6.55 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $5.70 by $0.85. Deere & Company had a return on equity of 18.25% and a net margin of 10.09%.The company had revenue of $13.37 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $11.55 billion. During the same quarter last year, the company posted $6.64 earnings per share. The business’s quarterly revenue was up 5.4% compared to the same quarter last year. As a group, sell-side analysts anticipate that Deere & Company will post 18.08 EPS for the current year.

Deere & Company Dividend Announcement

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, August 10th. Investors of record on Tuesday, June 30th will be paid a dividend of $1.62 per share. This represents a $6.48 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.1%. The ex-dividend date is Tuesday, June 30th. Deere & Company’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 36.71%.

About Deere & Company

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.