Chapman Financial Group LLC Takes $497,000 Position in Deere & Company (NYSE:DE)

Chapman Financial Group LLC acquired a new position in Deere & Company (NYSE:DE - Free Report) during the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the SEC. The fund acquired 1,172 shares of the industrial products company's stock, valued at approximately $497,000.

Several other institutional investors also recently modified their holdings of the stock. Pineridge Advisors LLC raised its holdings in shares of Deere & Company by 60.5% in the 4th quarter. Pineridge Advisors LLC now owns 69 shares of the industrial products company's stock worth $29,000 after buying an additional 26 shares in the last quarter. YANKCOM Partnership bought a new stake in shares of Deere & Company during the fourth quarter worth approximately $34,000. Synergy Asset Management LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Deere & Company during the fourth quarter worth $35,000. Sierra Ocean LLC bought a new stake in shares of Deere & Company in the 4th quarter valued at about $44,000. Finally, Halbert Hargrove Global Advisors LLC acquired a new stake in Deere & Company in the fourth quarter worth $48,000. Institutional investors own 68.58% of the company's stock.

Deere & Company Trading Down 0.7 %

Deere & Company stock traded down $3.19 during midday trading on Wednesday, hitting $472.11. 1,011,246 shares of the stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 1,414,604. The company has a current ratio of 2.22, a quick ratio of 1.98 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.94. The stock has a market capitalization of $128.14 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 20.93, a PEG ratio of 2.14 and a beta of 1.08. The stock's 50-day simple moving average is $464.61 and its 200 day simple moving average is $449.75. Deere & Company has a fifty-two week low of $340.20 and a fifty-two week high of $515.05.

Deere & Company (NYSE:DE - Get Free Report) last posted its earnings results on Thursday, February 13th. The industrial products company reported $3.19 earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $3.14 by $0.05. Deere & Company had a net margin of 12.94% and a return on equity of 27.31%. On average, equities analysts anticipate that Deere & Company will post 19.32 EPS for the current year.

Deere & Company Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, May 8th. Stockholders of record on Monday, March 31st will be issued a $1.62 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Monday, March 31st. This represents a $6.48 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.37%. Deere & Company's payout ratio is 28.72%.

Insider Transactions at Deere & Company

In other news, insider Rajesh Kalathur sold 24,580 shares of the company's stock in a transaction on Tuesday, February 18th. The stock was sold at an average price of $500.61, for a total value of $12,304,993.80. Following the sale, the insider now directly owns 74,878 shares in the company, valued at $37,484,675.58. This represents a 24.71 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through the SEC website. Insiders own 0.29% of the company's stock.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

DE has been the topic of several recent research reports. Argus set a $510.00 price target on Deere & Company in a research note on Friday, March 7th. Robert W. Baird reiterated a "neutral" rating and set a $501.00 price objective on shares of Deere & Company in a research report on Monday, March 3rd. Baird R W cut Deere & Company from a "strong-buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a research note on Monday, March 3rd. Evercore ISI boosted their target price on shares of Deere & Company from $437.00 to $455.00 and gave the company an "in-line" rating in a research report on Wednesday, February 19th. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. lifted their target price on Deere & Company from $470.00 to $500.00 and gave the company a "neutral" rating in a research report on Monday, February 10th. One analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, thirteen have assigned a hold rating and eight have assigned a buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, Deere & Company currently has a consensus rating of "Hold" and a consensus target price of $460.21.

Deere & Company Company Profile

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.