Rakuten Investment Management Inc. Buys Shares of 40,620 Deere & Company $DE

Rakuten Investment Management Inc. bought a new position in Deere & Company (NYSE:DE) in the second quarter, Holdings Channel.com reports. The institutional investor bought 40,620 shares of the industrial products company’s stock, valued at approximately $25,454,000.

Other hedge funds have also modified their holdings of the company. BlackRock Inc. bought a new position in shares of Deere & Company during the 2nd quarter worth approximately $11,763,504,000. State Street Corp lifted its position in Deere & Company by 0.9% during the fourth quarter. State Street Corp now owns 10,485,949 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $4,898,717,000 after acquiring an additional 97,049 shares during the last quarter. Capital World Investors boosted its stake in Deere & Company by 53.9% in the fourth quarter. Capital World Investors now owns 9,592,004 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $4,465,906,000 after acquiring an additional 3,358,264 shares in the last quarter. Price T Rowe Associates Inc. MD boosted its stake in Deere & Company by 2.1% in the fourth quarter. Price T Rowe Associates Inc. MD now owns 7,692,877 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $3,581,574,000 after acquiring an additional 158,584 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Geode Capital Management LLC grew its holdings in Deere & Company by 0.3% in the fourth quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 5,600,552 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $2,609,149,000 after purchasing an additional 17,269 shares during the last quarter. 68.58% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Deere & Company Trading Up 1.3%

Shares of NYSE:DE opened at $630.66 on Friday. The company has a quick ratio of 1.89, a current ratio of 2.10 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.45. Deere & Company has a 52-week low of $433.00 and a 52-week high of $674.19. The stock has a market cap of $170.24 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 35.04, a PEG ratio of 2.57 and a beta of 0.90. The business has a 50-day moving average price of $611.59 and a 200-day moving average price of $593.34.

Deere & Company (NYSE:DE) last issued its earnings results on Thursday, August 20th. The industrial products company reported $5.10 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $4.69 by $0.41. Deere & Company had a return on equity of 18.10% and a net margin of 10.16%.The firm had revenue of $12.61 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $10.81 billion. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm earned $4.75 earnings per share. Deere & Company’s revenue for the quarter was up 6.2% on a year-over-year basis. Equities analysts predict that Deere & Company will post 18.11 EPS for the current year.

Deere & Company Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, November 9th. Shareholders of record on Wednesday, September 30th will be paid a dividend of $1.62 per share. This represents a $6.48 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.0%. The ex-dividend date is Wednesday, September 30th. Deere & Company’s payout ratio is presently 36.00%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of equities analysts have recently issued reports on DE shares. Seaport Research Partners set a $570.00 price target on Deere & Company in a research report on Friday, August 14th. Royal Bank Of Canada reissued an “outperform” rating and issued a $752.00 price objective on shares of Deere & Company in a research report on Monday, August 24th. DA Davidson boosted their target price on Deere & Company from $685.00 to $760.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Monday, August 24th. Citigroup upped their target price on Deere & Company from $610.00 to $650.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research report on Friday, August 21st. Finally, Weiss Ratings reiterated a “hold (c+)” rating on shares of Deere & Company in a research note on Tuesday, August 18th. Fourteen investment analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and nine have assigned a Hold rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, Deere & Company presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $653.48.

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.