Cutler Investment Counsel LLC Sells 1,204 Shares of Deere & Company (NYSE:DE)

Key Points

• Cutler Investment Counsel LLC reduced its stake in Deere & Company by 3.4%, now holding 33,959 shares worth approximately $15.99 million.
• GAMMA Investing LLC made a significant move, increasing their holdings in Deere by over 61,000%, acquiring 1,753,022 shares valued at about $822.78 million.
• Deere & Company announced a quarterly dividend of $1.62 per share, which reflects an annual yield of 1.26% and will be paid on August 8th to shareholders of record by June 30th.

Cutler Investment Counsel LLC reduced its holdings in shares of Deere & Company (NYSE:DE - Free Report) by 3.4% in the first quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm owned 33,959 shares of the industrial products company's stock after selling 1,204 shares during the period. Deere & Company accounts for approximately 1.9% of Cutler Investment Counsel LLC's investment portfolio, making the stock its 18th biggest holding. Cutler Investment Counsel LLC's holdings in Deere & Company were worth $15,994,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other large investors have also recently bought and sold shares of the company. Hughes Financial Services LLC bought a new position in shares of Deere & Company during the 1st quarter worth about $29,000. Cornerstone Planning Group LLC lifted its position in Deere & Company by 116.1% in the 1st quarter. Cornerstone Planning Group LLC now owns 67 shares of the industrial products company's stock valued at $31,000 after acquiring an additional 36 shares in the last quarter. Orion Capital Management LLC bought a new position in Deere & Company in the 4th quarter valued at about $34,000. Mascagni Wealth Management Inc. bought a new position in Deere & Company in the 4th quarter valued at about $39,000. Finally, Dogwood Wealth Management LLC bought a new position in Deere & Company in the 4th quarter valued at about $42,000. 68.58% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several brokerages recently weighed in on DE. Wall Street Zen cut shares of Deere & Company from a "hold" rating to a "sell" rating in a research report on Friday, May 30th. Bank of America raised their price target on shares of Deere & Company from $495.00 to $556.00 and gave the company a "neutral" rating in a research report on Friday, May 16th. Citigroup dropped their price target on shares of Deere & Company from $550.00 to $525.00 and set a "neutral" rating on the stock in a research report on Friday, May 30th. Evercore ISI increased their price objective on shares of Deere & Company from $455.00 to $493.00 and gave the company an "in-line" rating in a research note on Monday, May 19th. Finally, Barclays increased their price objective on shares of Deere & Company from $475.00 to $530.00 and gave the company an "overweight" rating in a research note on Friday, May 16th. One equities 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 issued a strong buy rating to the company's stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the company has an average rating of "Hold" and a consensus price target of $515.50.

Deere & Company Stock Performance

Shares of DE stock traded up $16.31 during trading hours on Thursday, hitting $524.18. 1,549,282 shares of the company were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 1,018,595. Deere & Company has a 52-week low of $340.20 and a 52-week high of $533.78. The stock has a market capitalization of $141.96 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 25.36, a P/E/G ratio of 3.22 and a beta of 1.08. The company has a current ratio of 2.11, a quick ratio of 1.89 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.76. The firm has a fifty day simple moving average of $512.43 and a 200 day simple moving average of $486.52.

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 for the quarter, beating analysts' consensus estimates 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 during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $10.80 billion. During the same period in the previous year, the business earned $8.53 EPS. Deere & Company's revenue was down 17.9% compared to the same quarter last year. Research analysts predict that Deere & Company will post 19.32 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Deere & Company Announces Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, August 8th. Investors of record on Monday, June 30th will be paid a $1.62 dividend. This represents a $6.48 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.2%. The ex-dividend date is Monday, June 30th. Deere & Company's payout ratio is currently 31.35%.

Deere & 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.