AXS Investments LLC Raises Stake in Deere & Company (NYSE:DE)

Key Points

• AXS Investments LLC increased its stake in Deere & Company by 23.7%, owning a total of 3,661 shares worth approximately $1.7 million.
• Several institutional investors have boosted their holdings in Deere, contributing to a total institutional ownership of 68.58% of the company's stock.
• Deere & Company has announced a quarterly dividend of $1.62 per share, with an annualized yield of 1.3% set to be paid out on August 8th.

AXS Investments LLC raised its stake in shares of Deere & Company (NYSE:DE - Free Report) by 23.7% in the 1st quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The fund owned 3,661 shares of the industrial products company's stock after acquiring an additional 702 shares during the period. AXS Investments LLC's holdings in Deere & Company were worth $1,718,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in DE. Brighton Jones LLC lifted its position in Deere & Company by 39.1% in the fourth quarter. Brighton Jones LLC now owns 4,548 shares of the industrial products company's stock valued at $1,927,000 after purchasing an additional 1,278 shares during the period. World Investment Advisors raised its stake in shares of Deere & Company by 156.4% during the 4th quarter. World Investment Advisors now owns 1,372 shares of the industrial products company's stock worth $581,000 after buying an additional 837 shares in the last quarter. Envestnet Asset Management Inc. lifted its holdings in shares of Deere & Company by 6.2% in the 4th quarter. Envestnet Asset Management Inc. now owns 259,400 shares of the industrial products company's stock valued at $109,908,000 after buying an additional 15,099 shares during the period. Shelton Capital Management lifted its holdings in shares of Deere & Company by 32.6% in the 4th quarter. Shelton Capital Management now owns 18,324 shares of the industrial products company's stock valued at $7,764,000 after buying an additional 4,500 shares during the period. Finally, FIL Ltd boosted its stake in shares of Deere & Company by 3.3% in the fourth quarter. FIL Ltd now owns 28,417 shares of the industrial products company's stock valued at $12,040,000 after buying an additional 907 shares in the last quarter. 68.58% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Deere & Company Trading Down 0.5%

NYSE:DE traded down $2.74 during mid-day trading on Thursday, reaching $506.90. The company's stock had a trading volume of 958,544 shares, compared to its average volume of 1,135,084. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.76, a current ratio of 2.11 and a quick ratio of 1.89. The stock has a market cap of $137.28 billion, a P/E ratio of 24.52, a P/E/G ratio of 3.23 and a beta of 1.06. The company's fifty day simple moving average is $512.37 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $488.75. Deere & Company has a twelve month low of $343.38 and a twelve month high of $533.78.

Deere & Company (NYSE:DE - Get Free Report) last released its earnings results on Thursday, May 15th. The industrial products company reported $6.64 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $5.72 by $0.92. Deere & Company had a net margin of 12.40% and a return on equity of 24.39%. The business had revenue of $11.17 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $10.80 billion. During the same period last year, the company earned $8.53 earnings per share. The company's quarterly revenue was down 17.9% on a year-over-year basis. On average, equities analysts predict that Deere & Company will post 19.32 EPS for the current year.

Deere & Company Announces Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, August 8th. Investors of record on Monday, June 30th will be issued a $1.62 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Monday, June 30th. This represents a $6.48 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.3%. Deere & Company's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 31.35%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of brokerages have recently issued reports on DE. Bank of America increased their price target on shares of Deere & Company from $495.00 to $556.00 and gave the company a "neutral" rating in a report on Friday, May 16th. Barclays boosted their price objective on shares of Deere & Company from $475.00 to $530.00 and gave the stock an "overweight" rating in a research report on Friday, May 16th. Melius upgraded shares of Deere & Company from a "hold" rating to a "buy" rating in a report on Friday, June 6th. Oppenheimer upped their price target on shares of Deere & Company from $555.00 to $560.00 and gave the company an "outperform" rating in a report on Tuesday, July 15th. Finally, Wall Street Zen lowered shares of Deere & Company from a "hold" rating to a "sell" rating in a research report on Friday, May 30th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, twelve have given a hold rating, eight have issued a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, the company currently has a consensus rating of "Hold" and a consensus price target of $515.50.

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.