HM Payson & Co. Decreases Stake in Deere & Company (NYSE:DE)

HM Payson & Co. lessened its stake in Deere & Company (NYSE:DE - Free Report) by 1.7% in the 1st quarter, according to its most recent filing with the SEC. The firm owned 31,072 shares of the industrial products company's stock after selling 535 shares during the quarter. HM Payson & Co.'s holdings in Deere & Company were worth $14,584,000 as of its most recent filing with the SEC.

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also made changes to their positions in the stock. Price T Rowe Associates Inc. MD boosted its stake in shares of Deere & Company by 19.9% in the 4th quarter. Price T Rowe Associates Inc. MD now owns 6,589,760 shares of the industrial products company's stock valued at $2,792,082,000 after buying an additional 1,095,736 shares during the period. Capital World Investors boosted its stake in shares of Deere & Company by 2.7% in the 4th quarter. Capital World Investors now owns 6,058,259 shares of the industrial products company's stock valued at $2,566,884,000 after buying an additional 157,224 shares during the period. FMR LLC boosted its stake in shares of Deere & Company by 22.9% in the 4th quarter. FMR LLC now owns 5,581,408 shares of the industrial products company's stock valued at $2,364,843,000 after buying an additional 1,039,395 shares during the period. Geode Capital Management LLC lifted its stake in Deere & Company by 1.9% during the fourth quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 5,305,571 shares of the industrial products company's stock worth $2,247,216,000 after purchasing an additional 97,203 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Norges Bank purchased a new stake in Deere & Company during the fourth quarter worth approximately $1,244,094,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 68.58% of the company's stock.

Analyst Ratings Changes

DE has been the subject of several recent analyst reports. Oppenheimer boosted their target price on Deere & Company from $513.00 to $555.00 and gave the stock an "outperform" rating in a research note on Friday, May 16th. Citigroup decreased their target price on Deere & Company from $550.00 to $525.00 and set a "neutral" rating for the company in a research note on Friday, May 30th. BMO Capital Markets restated a "market perform" rating and set a $460.00 target price (up previously from $425.00) on shares of Deere & Company in a research note on Wednesday, May 21st. Raymond James Financial boosted their target price on Deere & Company from $530.00 to $560.00 and gave the stock an "outperform" rating in a research note on Friday, May 16th. Finally, Argus set a $510.00 target price on Deere & Company in a research note on Friday, March 7th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, twelve have assigned a hold rating, eight have given a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the company's stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock has an average rating of "Hold" and a consensus price target of $515.19.

Deere & Company Price Performance

Deere & Company stock opened at $517.50 on Friday. Deere & Company has a 12 month low of $340.20 and a 12 month high of $533.78. 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 business has a 50 day simple moving average of $506.47 and a 200-day simple moving average of $475.24. The stock has a market capitalization of $140.15 billion, a PE ratio of 25.04, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 3.31 and a beta of 1.08.

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

Deere & Company Dividend Announcement

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 issued a dividend of $1.62 per share. This represents a $6.48 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.25%. The ex-dividend date is Monday, June 30th. Deere & Company's dividend payout ratio is presently 31.35%.

Deere & Company 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.

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