Franklin Resources Inc. Reduces Stake in Deere & Company $DE

Franklin Resources Inc. lowered its holdings in Deere & Company (NYSE:DE) by 7.6% in the 4th quarter, HoldingsChannel reports. The institutional investor owned 432,445 shares of the industrial products company’s stock after selling 35,738 shares during the period. Franklin Resources Inc.’s holdings in Deere & Company were worth $201,333,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other institutional investors and hedge funds have also bought and sold shares of the company. Strategic Advocates LLC purchased a new stake in Deere & Company in the 3rd quarter worth approximately $25,000. Key Capital Management INC purchased a new stake in Deere & Company in the 4th quarter worth approximately $27,000. McIlrath & Eck LLC purchased a new stake in Deere & Company in the 4th quarter worth approximately $30,000. Wealth Watch Advisors INC purchased a new stake in Deere & Company in the 3rd quarter worth approximately $32,000. Finally, Tucker Asset Management LLC purchased a new stake in Deere & Company in the 4th quarter worth approximately $34,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 68.58% of the company’s stock.

Deere & Company Price Performance

Shares of DE stock opened at $578.07 on Wednesday. The stock has a market cap of $156.04 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 32.75, a PEG ratio of 2.13 and a beta of 0.92. The business’s fifty day moving average is $572.93 and its 200 day moving average is $547.52. Deere & Company has a twelve month low of $433.00 and a twelve month high of $674.19. The company has a quick ratio of 1.95, a current ratio of 2.18 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.54.

Deere & Company (NYSE:DE) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, May 21st. The industrial products company reported $6.55 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $5.70 by $0.85. The company had revenue of $13.37 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $11.55 billion. Deere & Company had a return on equity of 18.25% and a net margin of 10.09%.The firm’s revenue for the quarter was up 5.4% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the prior year, the firm earned $6.64 earnings per share. Research analysts expect that Deere & Company will post 18.1 EPS for the current fiscal 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 $1.62 dividend. This represents a $6.48 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.1%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Tuesday, June 30th. Deere & Company’s dividend payout ratio is presently 36.71%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several research firms have weighed in on DE. Raymond James Financial dropped their price objective on Deere & Company from $765.00 to $700.00 and set an “outperform” rating for the company in a report on Friday, May 22nd. Sanford C. Bernstein increased their price objective on Deere & Company from $521.00 to $615.00 and gave the stock a “market perform” rating in a report on Friday, February 20th. Weiss Ratings upgraded Deere & Company from a “hold (c)” rating to a “hold (c+)” rating in a report on Thursday, May 21st. Robert W. Baird dropped their price objective on Deere & Company from $580.00 to $525.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a report on Friday, May 22nd. Finally, Citigroup decreased their target price on Deere & Company from $625.00 to $595.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a research report on Friday, May 22nd. Fourteen analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and nine have given a Hold rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $639.58.

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.