Merit Financial Group LLC Grows Holdings in Deere & Company $DE

Key Points

• Merit Financial Group increased its stake in Deere & Company by 35.7% in Q4, acquiring 3,501 shares to hold 13,296 shares valued at about $6.19 million.
• Deere beat quarterly expectations with EPS of $2.42 (vs. $1.90 est.) and revenue of $9.61 billion (vs. $7.50 billion), and announced a quarterly dividend of $1.62 per share (annualized $6.48, ~1.1% yield).
• Analysts have been raising targets (e.g., RBC to $736, DA Davidson to $775) giving Deere a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" with a consensus target of $655.45, while institutional investors own about 68.6% of the stock.

Merit Financial Group LLC grew its stake in Deere & Company (NYSE:DE - Free Report) by 35.7% during the fourth quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the SEC. The firm owned 13,296 shares of the industrial products company's stock after acquiring an additional 3,501 shares during the period. Merit Financial Group LLC's holdings in Deere & Company were worth $6,191,000 as of its most recent filing with the SEC.

A number of other institutional investors and hedge funds have also made changes to their positions in the stock. Capital World Investors raised its stake 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 valued at $2,850,687,000 after acquiring an additional 322,582 shares during the period. Fisher Asset Management LLC raised its stake 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 valued at $1,244,670,000 after acquiring an additional 141,790 shares during the period. Invesco Ltd. raised its stake in shares of Deere & Company by 21.7% in the 3rd quarter. Invesco Ltd. now owns 1,815,007 shares of the industrial products company's stock valued at $829,930,000 after acquiring an additional 323,512 shares during the period. Legal & General Group Plc raised its stake in shares of Deere & Company by 7.6% in the 3rd quarter. Legal & General Group Plc now owns 1,651,982 shares of the industrial products company's stock valued at $755,385,000 after acquiring an additional 115,975 shares during the period. Finally, Rothschild & Co Wealth Management UK Ltd raised its stake in shares of Deere & Company by 1.5% in the 3rd quarter. Rothschild & Co Wealth Management UK Ltd now owns 1,196,643 shares of the industrial products company's stock valued at $547,177,000 after acquiring an additional 17,785 shares during the period. 68.58% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Deere & Company Price Performance

Shares of DE opened at $590.10 on Friday. 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 has a fifty-two week low of $433.00 and a fifty-two week high of $674.19. The company has a market cap of $159.39 billion, a P/E ratio of 33.26, a PEG ratio of 2.04 and a beta of 0.98. The firm's 50 day moving average price is $595.10 and its 200 day moving average price is $521.74.

Deere & Company (NYSE:DE - Get Free Report) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, February 19th. The industrial products company reported $2.42 EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $1.90 by $0.52. Deere & Company had a net margin of 10.29% and a return on equity of 18.93%. The company had revenue of $9.61 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $7.50 billion. During the same quarter in the previous year, the business posted $3.19 EPS. The firm's revenue was up 17.5% on a year-over-year basis. On average, research analysts forecast that Deere & Company will post 19.32 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Deere & Company Announces Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, May 8th. Shareholders of record on Tuesday, March 31st will be issued a dividend of $1.62 per share. This represents a $6.48 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.1%. The ex-dividend date is Tuesday, March 31st. Deere & Company's payout ratio is 36.53%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several brokerages recently weighed in on DE. Royal Bank Of Canada upped their target price 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. Oppenheimer reaffirmed an "outperform" rating and set a $715.00 target price on shares of Deere & Company in a research note on Friday, February 20th. DA Davidson upped their target price on shares of Deere & Company from $580.00 to $775.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a research note on Friday, February 20th. Wolfe Research upped their target price 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. Finally, Barclays upped their target price on shares of Deere & Company from $530.00 to $640.00 and gave the stock an "overweight" rating in a research note on Tuesday, March 31st. Sixteen equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and nine have given a Hold rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, Deere & Company currently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus target price of $655.45.

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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