Chilton Investment Co. Inc. Has $48.57 Million Holdings in Deere & Company $DE

Key Points

• Chilton Investment Co. raised its stake in Deere & Company by 3.0% to 106,217 shares worth about $48.57 million, making DE ~1.0% of Chilton's portfolio and its 21st largest holding.
• Several large institutions materially increased DE positions — including Norges Bank (new ~$1.58B stake), Marshall Wace, VanEck, Invesco and Laurel Wealth — and institutional investors now own roughly 68.6% of the stock.
• Company insiders have been selling: Cory J. Reed sold 12,000 shares and CEO John C. May II sold 41,472 shares in January, and insiders now own just 0.29% of Deere.

Chilton Investment Co. Inc. increased its position in shares of Deere & Company (NYSE:DE - Free Report) by 3.0% during the third quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm owned 106,217 shares of the industrial products company's stock after purchasing an additional 3,103 shares during the period. Deere & Company comprises about 1.0% of Chilton Investment Co. Inc.'s investment portfolio, making the stock its 21st largest position. Chilton Investment Co. Inc.'s holdings in Deere & Company were worth $48,569,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other large investors have also modified their holdings of DE. Norges Bank acquired a new stake in Deere & Company during the second quarter worth $1,578,243,000. Marshall Wace LLP raised its stake in shares of Deere & Company by 573.9% in the 2nd quarter. Marshall Wace LLP now owns 842,882 shares of the industrial products company's stock valued at $428,597,000 after buying an additional 717,808 shares in the last quarter. Van ECK Associates Corp raised its stake in shares of Deere & Company by 278.0% in the 3rd quarter. Van ECK Associates Corp now owns 487,697 shares of the industrial products company's stock valued at $223,005,000 after buying an additional 358,687 shares in the last quarter. Laurel Wealth Advisors LLC lifted its holdings in shares of Deere & Company by 50,691.9% during the 2nd quarter. Laurel Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 332,179 shares of the industrial products company's stock worth $168,910,000 after acquiring an additional 331,525 shares during the period. Finally, Invesco Ltd. lifted its holdings in shares of Deere & Company by 21.7% during the 3rd quarter. Invesco Ltd. now owns 1,815,007 shares of the industrial products company's stock worth $829,930,000 after acquiring an additional 323,512 shares during the period. 68.58% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other Deere & Company news, insider Cory J. Reed sold 12,000 shares of Deere & Company stock in a transaction on Wednesday, January 14th. The stock was sold at an average price of $510.00, for a total value of $6,120,000.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider owned 20,792 shares in the company, valued at approximately $10,603,920. The trade was a 36.59% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. Also, CEO John C. May II sold 41,472 shares of the business's stock in a transaction on Thursday, January 8th. The stock was sold at an average price of $501.49, for a total value of $20,797,793.28. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief executive officer directly owned 117,970 shares in the company, valued at approximately $59,160,775.30. This represents a 26.01% decrease in their position. Additional details regarding this sale are available in the official SEC disclosure. Company insiders own 0.29% of the company's stock.

Deere & Company Price Performance

NYSE:DE opened at $577.42 on Friday. The firm has a market cap of $155.97 billion, a PE ratio of 32.55, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.02 and a beta of 0.96. Deere & Company has a 12 month low of $404.42 and a 12 month high of $674.19. The company has a quick ratio of 1.96, a current ratio of 2.21 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.59. The company's 50-day moving average price is $564.21 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $503.08.

Deere & Company (NYSE:DE - Get Free Report) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, February 19th. The industrial products company reported $2.42 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $1.90 by $0.52. Deere & Company had a net margin of 10.29% and a return on equity of 18.93%. The company had revenue of $9.61 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $7.50 billion. During the same quarter last year, the business posted $3.19 earnings per share. The company's revenue was up 17.5% on a year-over-year basis. On average, equities analysts anticipate that Deere & Company will post 19.32 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Deere & Company Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, May 8th. Investors of record on Tuesday, March 31st will be issued a dividend of $1.62 per share. This represents a $6.48 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.1%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Tuesday, March 31st. Deere & Company's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 36.53%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of analysts recently weighed in on DE shares. Evercore reissued a "positive" rating on shares of Deere & Company in a research note on Friday, November 28th. Weiss Ratings restated a "hold (c+)" rating on shares of Deere & Company in a research note on Monday, December 29th. Jefferies Financial Group downgraded Deere & Company from a "hold" rating to an "underperform" rating and lifted their price objective for the company from $475.00 to $550.00 in a report on Monday, February 23rd. Wolfe Research upped their price objective on Deere & Company from $520.00 to $550.00 and gave the company an "outperform" rating in a research note on Friday, January 2nd. Finally, Raymond James Financial restated an "outperform" rating and set a $765.00 target price on shares of Deere & Company in a research report on Monday, February 23rd. Sixteen investment analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, eight have issued a Hold rating and one has issued a Sell rating to the company's stock. According to data from MarketBeat, Deere & Company presently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average price target of $644.70.

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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