Deere & Company (NYSE:DE) Upgraded to "Strong-Buy" at Melius Research

Deere & Company (NYSE:DE - Get Free Report) was upgraded by equities researchers at Melius Research from a "hold" rating to a "strong-buy" rating in a note issued to investors on Friday,Zacks.com reports.

Several other brokerages also recently weighed in on DE. Melius upgraded shares of Deere & Company from a "hold" rating to a "buy" rating in a research note on Friday. Morgan Stanley raised their target price on shares of Deere & Company from $450.00 to $500.00 and gave the company an "overweight" rating in a research note on Wednesday, April 16th. Raymond James raised their target price on shares of Deere & Company from $530.00 to $560.00 and gave the company an "outperform" rating in a research note on Friday, May 16th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. raised their target price on shares of Deere & Company from $490.00 to $540.00 and gave the company a "neutral" rating in a research note on Friday, May 16th. Finally, Bank of America raised their target price on shares of Deere & Company from $495.00 to $556.00 and gave the company a "neutral" rating in a research note on Friday, May 16th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, twelve have issued a hold rating, eight have issued a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the company's stock. According to data from MarketBeat, Deere & Company currently has an average rating of "Hold" and a consensus target price of $515.19.

Deere & Company Stock Up 1.7%

Shares of NYSE DE traded up $8.87 during midday trading on Friday, reaching $519.62. 1,473,759 shares of the company's stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 1,396,705. The company has a quick ratio of 1.98, a current ratio of 2.22 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.94. The stock's 50 day simple moving average is $479.20 and its 200-day simple moving average is $465.95. Deere & Company has a one year low of $340.20 and a one year high of $533.78. The company has a market cap of $140.73 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 23.03, a P/E/G ratio of 2.14 and a beta of 1.09.

Deere & Company (NYSE:DE - Get Free Report) last released its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, May 15th. The industrial products company reported $6.64 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts' consensus estimates of $5.72 by $0.92. Deere & Company had a net margin of 12.94% and a return on equity of 27.31%. The firm had revenue of $11.17 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $10.80 billion. During the same period last year, the firm earned $8.53 earnings per share. The company's quarterly revenue was down 17.9% on a year-over-year basis. On average, analysts predict that Deere & Company will post 19.32 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

A number of institutional investors and hedge funds have recently added to or reduced their stakes in DE. Chicago Partners Investment Group LLC boosted its holdings in Deere & Company by 1.2% during the first quarter. Chicago Partners Investment Group LLC now owns 1,803 shares of the industrial products company's stock worth $852,000 after buying an additional 21 shares in the last quarter. Tyler Stone Wealth Management boosted its holdings in Deere & Company by 1.7% during the first quarter. Tyler Stone Wealth Management now owns 1,230 shares of the industrial products company's stock worth $577,000 after buying an additional 21 shares in the last quarter. Robertson Stephens Wealth Management LLC boosted its holdings in Deere & Company by 2.2% during the fourth quarter. Robertson Stephens Wealth Management LLC now owns 1,002 shares of the industrial products company's stock worth $426,000 after buying an additional 22 shares in the last quarter. Sunbelt Securities Inc. boosted its holdings in Deere & Company by 2.4% during the first quarter. Sunbelt Securities Inc. now owns 925 shares of the industrial products company's stock worth $434,000 after buying an additional 22 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Hayek Kallen Investment Management boosted its holdings in Deere & Company by 1.7% during the first quarter. Hayek Kallen Investment Management now owns 1,299 shares of the industrial products company's stock worth $610,000 after buying an additional 22 shares in the last quarter. 68.58% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

About Deere & Company

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.