Klingman & Associates LLC Decreases Position in Deere & Company $DE

Key Points

• Klingman & Associates cut its stake in Deere by 39.5% in Q4, selling 2,062 shares and leaving it with 3,157 shares valued at about $1.47 million per the latest 13F filing.
• Multiple analysts have raised price targets (DA Davidson to $775, Wolfe to $660, BofA to $672), leaving a MarketBeat consensus of "Moderate Buy" with a consensus target of $655.45 (16 Buys, 9 Holds).
• Deere beat quarterly expectations with EPS of $2.42 (vs. $1.90 est.) and revenue of $9.61B (vs. $7.50B est.), and declared a quarterly dividend of $1.62 ($6.48 annualized, ~1.2% yield; ex-dividend March 31).

Klingman & Associates LLC cut its stake in shares of Deere & Company (NYSE:DE - Free Report) by 39.5% during the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm owned 3,157 shares of the industrial products company's stock after selling 2,062 shares during the period. Klingman & Associates LLC's holdings in Deere & Company were worth $1,470,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC).

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also added to or reduced their stakes in the stock. Blue Chip Partners LLC raised its position in Deere & Company by 1.4% during the second quarter. Blue Chip Partners LLC now owns 1,574 shares of the industrial products company's stock valued at $801,000 after purchasing an additional 21 shares during the period. Bouchey Financial Group Ltd raised its position in Deere & Company by 4.4% during the third quarter. Bouchey Financial Group Ltd now owns 500 shares of the industrial products company's stock valued at $229,000 after purchasing an additional 21 shares during the period. Silvant Capital Management LLC raised its position in Deere & Company by 0.5% during the third quarter. Silvant Capital Management LLC now owns 4,449 shares of the industrial products company's stock valued at $2,034,000 after purchasing an additional 21 shares during the period. Forefront Wealth Partners LLC raised its position in Deere & Company by 4.1% during the third quarter. Forefront Wealth Partners LLC now owns 564 shares of the industrial products company's stock valued at $258,000 after purchasing an additional 22 shares during the period. Finally, Romano Brothers AND Company raised its position in Deere & Company by 0.3% during the fourth quarter. Romano Brothers AND Company now owns 7,936 shares of the industrial products company's stock valued at $3,695,000 after purchasing an additional 22 shares during the period. 68.58% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of research analysts have recently commented on DE shares. Wolfe Research upped their target price on Deere & Company from $550.00 to $660.00 and gave the company an "outperform" rating in a research note on Tuesday, March 31st. DA Davidson upped their target price on Deere & Company from $580.00 to $775.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a research note on Friday, February 20th. Jefferies Financial Group raised Deere & Company from an "underperform" rating to a "hold" rating and set a $550.00 target price on the stock in a research note on Wednesday, April 8th. Bank of America upped their target price on Deere & Company from $502.00 to $672.00 and gave the company a "neutral" rating in a research note on Friday, February 20th. Finally, Weiss Ratings reaffirmed a "hold (c+)" rating on shares of Deere & Company in a research note on Monday, December 29th. Sixteen investment analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and nine have given a Hold rating to the company's stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the company has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus target price of $655.45.

Deere & Company Stock Down 5.0%

Shares of NYSE:DE opened at $562.54 on Friday. Deere & Company has a 52-week low of $433.00 and a 52-week high of $674.19. The stock has a market cap of $151.95 billion, a P/E ratio of 31.71, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.07 and a beta of 0.98. The business's 50 day moving average is $593.61 and its 200 day moving average is $525.65. The company has a quick ratio of 1.96, a current ratio of 2.21 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.59.

Deere & Company (NYSE:DE - Get Free Report) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, February 19th. The industrial products company reported $2.42 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $1.90 by $0.52. Deere & Company had a return on equity of 18.93% and a net margin of 10.29%.The company had revenue of $9.61 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $7.50 billion. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm earned $3.19 earnings per share. Deere & Company's revenue was up 17.5% compared to the same quarter last year. Sell-side analysts predict that Deere & Company will post 18.01 EPS for the current year.

Deere & Company Dividend Announcement

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, May 8th. Investors of record on Tuesday, March 31st will be paid a $1.62 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Tuesday, March 31st. This represents a $6.48 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.2%. Deere & Company's dividend payout ratio is 36.53%.

Deere & 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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