MetLife Investment Management LLC Has $30.84 Million Position in Deere & Company $DE

Key Points

• MetLife Investment Management LLC reduced its stake in Deere & Company by 2.4%, holding 65,716 shares valued at approximately $30.84 million as of the most recent quarter.
• Institutional investors own 68.58% of Deere & Company's stock, with notable increases in holdings from firms like Assenagon Asset Management and OVERSEA CHINESE BANKING Corp Ltd.
• Wall Street analysts have a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" for Deere, raising price targets with estimates now ranging from $460 to $556.

MetLife Investment Management LLC lessened its position in Deere & Company (NYSE:DE - Free Report) by 2.4% in the first quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 65,716 shares of the industrial products company's stock after selling 1,592 shares during the period. MetLife Investment Management LLC's holdings in Deere & Company were worth $30,844,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other institutional investors and hedge funds have also bought and sold shares of the company. Assenagon Asset Management S.A. increased its holdings in Deere & Company by 58.9% in the 1st quarter. Assenagon Asset Management S.A. now owns 13,625 shares of the industrial products company's stock worth $6,395,000 after purchasing an additional 5,053 shares in the last quarter. OVERSEA CHINESE BANKING Corp Ltd grew its position in shares of Deere & Company by 10.7% in the 1st quarter. OVERSEA CHINESE BANKING Corp Ltd now owns 8,280 shares of the industrial products company's stock valued at $3,863,000 after buying an additional 798 shares during the last quarter. Providence Capital Advisors LLC grew its position in shares of Deere & Company by 2.1% in the 1st quarter. Providence Capital Advisors LLC now owns 14,639 shares of the industrial products company's stock valued at $6,871,000 after buying an additional 303 shares during the last quarter. ASR Vermogensbeheer N.V. bought a new stake in shares of Deere & Company in the 1st quarter valued at about $13,588,000. Finally, Bragg Financial Advisors Inc grew its position in shares of Deere & Company by 12.7% in the 1st quarter. Bragg Financial Advisors Inc now owns 7,213 shares of the industrial products company's stock valued at $3,386,000 after buying an additional 813 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 68.58% of the company's stock.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of equities research analysts have commented on DE shares. Bank of America upped their price target on Deere & Company from $495.00 to $556.00 and gave the company a "neutral" rating in a research report on Friday, May 16th. BMO Capital Markets reiterated a "market perform" rating and issued a $460.00 price target (up previously from $425.00) on shares of Deere & Company in a research report on Wednesday, May 21st. Barclays upped their price target on Deere & Company from $475.00 to $530.00 and gave the company an "overweight" rating in a research report on Friday, May 16th. Melius Research upgraded Deere & Company from a "hold" rating to a "strong-buy" rating in a research report on Friday, June 6th. Finally, Melius upgraded Deere & Company from a "hold" rating to a "buy" rating in a research report on Friday, June 6th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, eight have given a Buy rating and nine have issued a Hold rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus price target of $523.87.

Deere & Company Stock Up 1.7%

Shares of Deere & Company stock opened at $495.0920 on Friday. Deere & Company has a one year low of $374.46 and a one year high of $533.78. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.76, a current ratio of 2.19 and a quick ratio of 1.98. The stock's 50-day moving average is $508.58 and its 200 day moving average is $490.59. The firm has a market cap of $134.08 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 25.88, a PEG ratio of 3.17 and a beta of 1.06.

Deere & Company (NYSE:DE - Get Free Report) last announced its earnings results on Thursday, August 14th. The industrial products company reported $4.75 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $4.62 by $0.13. Deere & Company had a return on equity of 21.97% and a net margin of 11.72%.The company had revenue of $10.36 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $10.33 billion. During the same quarter in the prior year, the company earned $6.29 EPS. The firm's revenue for the quarter was down 9.0% compared to the same quarter last year. Equities research analysts anticipate that Deere & Company will post 19.32 EPS for the current year.

Deere & Company Dividend Announcement

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, August 8th. Shareholders of record on Monday, June 30th were issued a $1.62 dividend. The ex-dividend date was Monday, June 30th. This represents a $6.48 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.3%. Deere & Company's dividend payout ratio is presently 33.87%.

Deere & 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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