Gabelli Funds LLC Reduces Holdings in Deere & Company $DE

Key Points

• Gabelli Funds LLC trimmed its Deere & Company stake by 1.5% in the fourth quarter, selling 3,888 shares and ending with 253,014 shares valued at about $117.8 million.
• Several other large institutional investors also adjusted their positions, and 68.58% of Deere’s stock is held by hedge funds and other institutional investors.
• Analysts remain broadly positive on Deere, with a consensus “Moderate Buy” rating and an average price target of $655.45; the company also beat quarterly earnings and revenue estimates in its latest report.

Gabelli Funds LLC trimmed its stake in Deere & Company (NYSE:DE - Free Report) by 1.5% in the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm owned 253,014 shares of the industrial products company's stock after selling 3,888 shares during the period. Deere & Company accounts for about 0.8% of Gabelli Funds LLC's investment portfolio, making the stock its 19th biggest holding. Gabelli Funds LLC owned about 0.09% of Deere & Company worth $117,796,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently modified their holdings of the stock. Vanguard Group Inc. lifted its position in shares of Deere & Company by 0.9% in the 4th quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 22,583,185 shares of the industrial products company's stock worth $10,514,053,000 after purchasing an additional 198,332 shares during the period. Capital World Investors lifted its position in shares of Deere & Company by 5.5% in the 3rd quarter. Capital World Investors now owns 6,233,740 shares of the industrial products company's stock worth $2,850,687,000 after purchasing an additional 322,582 shares during the period. Fisher Asset Management LLC lifted its position in shares of Deere & Company by 5.5% in the 3rd quarter. Fisher Asset Management LLC now owns 2,722,018 shares of the industrial products company's stock worth $1,244,670,000 after purchasing an additional 141,790 shares during the period. Northwestern Mutual Wealth Management Co. lifted its position in shares of Deere & Company by 1,725.8% in the 4th quarter. Northwestern Mutual Wealth Management Co. now owns 2,003,715 shares of the industrial products company's stock worth $932,870,000 after purchasing an additional 1,893,972 shares during the period. Finally, M&T Bank Corp lifted its position in shares of Deere & Company by 1,199.8% in the 4th quarter. M&T Bank Corp now owns 1,864,701 shares of the industrial products company's stock worth $868,149,000 after purchasing an additional 1,721,239 shares during the period. 68.58% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several research analysts recently issued reports on DE shares. Wolfe Research increased their price target on shares of Deere & Company from $550.00 to $660.00 and gave the stock an "outperform" rating in a research note on Tuesday, March 31st. Citigroup decreased their price target on shares of Deere & Company from $675.00 to $625.00 and set a "neutral" rating for the company in a research note on Monday, March 9th. Morgan Stanley increased their price target on shares of Deere & Company from $560.00 to $730.00 and gave the stock an "overweight" rating in a research note on Monday, February 23rd. Royal Bank Of Canada increased their price target on shares of Deere & Company from $541.00 to $736.00 and gave the stock an "outperform" rating in a research note on Friday, February 20th. Finally, BMO Capital Markets increased their price target on shares of Deere & Company from $460.00 to $500.00 and gave the stock a "market perform" rating in a research note on Friday, February 20th. Fifteen equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and nine have given a Hold rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus target price of $655.45.

Deere & Company Stock Up 0.1%

Shares of Deere & Company stock opened at $562.12 on Monday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.59, a current ratio of 2.21 and a quick ratio of 1.96. The company has a 50-day moving average of $580.96 and a 200 day moving average of $537.44. The firm has a market cap of $151.83 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 31.69, a PEG ratio of 1.96 and a beta of 0.96. Deere & Company has a 1 year low of $433.00 and a 1 year high of $674.19.

Deere & Company (NYSE:DE - Get Free Report) last released its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, February 19th. The industrial products company reported $2.42 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts' consensus estimates of $1.90 by $0.52. The business had revenue of $9.61 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $7.50 billion. Deere & Company had a net margin of 10.29% and a return on equity of 18.93%. Deere & Company's revenue was up 17.5% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period last year, the business earned $3.19 EPS. As a group, sell-side analysts anticipate that Deere & Company will post 18.01 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Deere & Company Dividend Announcement

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, May 8th. Shareholders of record on Tuesday, March 31st were paid a dividend of $1.62 per share. This represents a $6.48 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.2%. The ex-dividend date was Tuesday, March 31st. Deere & Company's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 36.53%.

Deere & Company 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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