Alight Capital Management LP Purchases New Position in Deere & Company $DE

Key Points

• Alight Capital Management opened a new position in Deere & Company in the fourth quarter, buying 20,000 shares worth about $9.3 million. Deere now makes up roughly 2.4% of the firm’s portfolio.
• Deere’s latest quarterly results beat expectations, with EPS of $6.55 versus the $5.70 estimate and revenue of $13.37 billion versus the $11.55 billion consensus. Revenue rose 5.4% year over year.
• Analysts remain broadly positive on DE, with a consensus “Moderate Buy” rating and an average price target of $639.58, though several firms recently trimmed their targets. The stock also pays a quarterly dividend of $1.62 per share, yielding about 1.1%.

Alight Capital Management LP purchased a new stake in Deere & Company (NYSE:DE - Free Report) in the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the SEC. The firm purchased 20,000 shares of the industrial products company's stock, valued at approximately $9,311,000. Deere & Company comprises about 2.4% of Alight Capital Management LP's portfolio, making the stock its 13th largest holding.

Several other institutional investors have also added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Cerro Pacific Wealth Advisors LLC lifted its stake in Deere & Company by 0.6% in the fourth quarter. Cerro Pacific Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 3,179 shares of the industrial products company's stock worth $1,480,000 after purchasing an additional 19 shares during the last quarter. Hazlett Burt & Watson Inc. lifted its stake in Deere & Company by 2.4% in the fourth quarter. Hazlett Burt & Watson Inc. now owns 816 shares of the industrial products company's stock worth $379,000 after purchasing an additional 19 shares during the last quarter. Root Financial Partners LLC lifted its stake in Deere & Company by 2.2% in the fourth quarter. Root Financial Partners LLC now owns 880 shares of the industrial products company's stock worth $410,000 after purchasing an additional 19 shares during the last quarter. Verdence Capital Advisors LLC lifted its stake in Deere & Company by 2.7% in the fourth quarter. Verdence Capital Advisors LLC now owns 773 shares of the industrial products company's stock worth $360,000 after purchasing an additional 20 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Family Legacy Inc. lifted its stake in Deere & Company by 0.3% in the fourth quarter. Family Legacy Inc. now owns 7,894 shares of the industrial products company's stock worth $3,675,000 after purchasing an additional 20 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors own 68.58% of the company's stock.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several brokerages have issued reports on DE. Oppenheimer reissued an "outperform" rating and issued a $680.00 price objective (down from $715.00) on shares of Deere & Company in a research note on Wednesday, May 27th. Citigroup decreased their price objective on shares of Deere & Company from $625.00 to $595.00 and set a "neutral" rating for the company in a research note on Friday, May 22nd. Morgan Stanley raised their target price on shares of Deere & Company from $560.00 to $730.00 and gave the stock an "overweight" rating in a research report on Monday, February 23rd. Bank of America decreased their price target on shares of Deere & Company from $672.00 to $607.50 and set a "neutral" rating for the company in a research note on Friday, May 22nd. Finally, Robert W. Baird decreased their price target on shares of Deere & Company from $580.00 to $525.00 and set a "neutral" rating for the company in a research note on Friday, May 22nd. Fourteen investment analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and nine have issued a Hold rating to the company's stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the company currently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average price target of $639.58.

Deere & Company Stock Performance

Deere & Company stock opened at $589.13 on Thursday. The company has a market capitalization of $159.03 billion, a PE ratio of 33.38, a P/E/G ratio of 2.17 and a beta of 0.92. The company has a 50 day moving average price of $573.78 and a 200-day moving average price of $551.52. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.54, a quick ratio of 1.95 and a current ratio of 2.18. Deere & Company has a fifty-two week low of $433.00 and a fifty-two week high of $674.19.

Deere & Company (NYSE:DE - Get Free Report) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, May 21st. The industrial products company reported $6.55 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $5.70 by $0.85. The company had revenue of $13.37 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $11.55 billion. Deere & Company had a net margin of 10.09% and a return on equity of 18.25%. Deere & Company's revenue was up 5.4% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period last year, the company posted $6.64 earnings per share. As a group, equities analysts forecast that Deere & Company will post 18.13 earnings per share for the current year.

Deere & Company Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, August 10th. Investors of record on Tuesday, June 30th will be issued a dividend of $1.62 per share. 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 (DPR) is presently 36.71%.

Deere & 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.

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