ICICI Prudential Asset Management Co Ltd Purchases 4,000 Shares of Deere & Company $DE

Key Points

• ICICI Prudential Asset Management increased its Deere & Company stake by 88.9% in the fourth quarter, buying 4,000 additional shares and bringing its total holding to 8,500 shares worth about $3.96 million.
• Deere reported stronger-than-expected quarterly results, posting EPS of $6.55 versus estimates of $5.70 and revenue of $13.37 billion versus expectations of $11.55 billion.
• The company announced a quarterly dividend of $1.62 per share, payable August 10, which works out to an annualized dividend of $6.48 and a yield of about 1.1%.

ICICI Prudential Asset Management Co Ltd grew its holdings in shares of Deere & Company (NYSE:DE - Free Report) by 88.9% in the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund owned 8,500 shares of the industrial products company's stock after purchasing an additional 4,000 shares during the period. ICICI Prudential Asset Management Co Ltd's holdings in Deere & Company were worth $3,957,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other institutional investors have also recently made changes to their positions in DE. Cary Street Partners Financial LLC lifted its position in Deere & Company by 11.8% during the fourth quarter. Cary Street Partners Financial LLC now owns 10,312 shares of the industrial products company's stock valued at $4,801,000 after purchasing an additional 1,086 shares during the period. Spectrum Financial Alliance Ltd LLC grew its position in Deere & Company by 55.8% during the 4th quarter. Spectrum Financial Alliance Ltd LLC now owns 85,351 shares of the industrial products company's stock worth $39,737,000 after purchasing an additional 30,553 shares during the period. Westpac Banking Corp raised its stake in shares of Deere & Company by 78.6% during the 4th quarter. Westpac Banking Corp now owns 6,925 shares of the industrial products company's stock valued at $3,224,000 after buying an additional 3,047 shares during the last quarter. Public Sector Pension Investment Board raised its stake in shares of Deere & Company by 14.6% during the 3rd quarter. Public Sector Pension Investment Board now owns 21,174 shares of the industrial products company's stock valued at $9,682,000 after buying an additional 2,702 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Eubel Brady & Suttman Asset Management Inc. acquired a new position in shares of Deere & Company in the 3rd quarter valued at about $434,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 68.58% of the company's stock.

Deere & Company Trading Up 1.6%

Shares of Deere & Company stock opened at $569.09 on Friday. The company has a current ratio of 2.18, a quick ratio of 1.95 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.54. Deere & Company has a twelve month low of $433.00 and a twelve month high of $674.19. The firm has a market capitalization of $153.62 billion, a PE ratio of 32.24, a P/E/G ratio of 2.07 and a beta of 0.92. The firm's 50-day moving average price is $573.17 and its 200 day moving average price is $548.69.

Deere & Company (NYSE:DE - Get Free Report) last announced its earnings results on Thursday, May 21st. The industrial products company reported $6.55 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts' consensus estimates of $5.70 by $0.85. The business had revenue of $13.37 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $11.55 billion. Deere & Company had a return on equity of 18.25% and a net margin of 10.09%.The business's revenue was up 5.4% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm earned $6.64 earnings per share. On average, sell-side analysts predict that Deere & Company will post 18.13 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Deere & Company Dividend Announcement

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, August 10th. Shareholders of record on Tuesday, June 30th will be issued a $1.62 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Tuesday, June 30th. This represents a $6.48 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.1%. Deere & Company's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 36.71%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of research analysts have issued reports on the company. Bank of America decreased their price target on Deere & Company from $672.00 to $607.50 and set a "neutral" rating for the company in a report on Friday, May 22nd. DA Davidson cut their target price on shares of Deere & Company from $775.00 to $685.00 and set a "buy" rating for the company in a report on Friday, May 22nd. Argus boosted their target price on shares of Deere & Company from $540.00 to $700.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a research note on Tuesday, March 3rd. JPMorgan Chase & Co. raised their price target on shares of Deere & Company from $560.00 to $590.00 and gave the company a "neutral" rating in a research report on Thursday, June 4th. Finally, Weiss Ratings raised shares of Deere & Company from a "hold (c)" rating to a "hold (c+)" rating in a report on Thursday, May 21st. Fourteen equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and nine have given a Hold rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, Deere & Company currently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus price target of $639.58.

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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