Mitsubishi UFJ Asset Management Co. Ltd. Buys 25,356 Shares of Deere & Company $DE

Key Points

• Mitsubishi UFJ Asset Management raised its stake in Deere by 5.0% in Q4, buying 25,356 shares to own 535,194 shares (about 0.20% of the company) valued at roughly $249.8 million.
• Analysts are broadly positive with a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy", comprising 16 Buys and 9 Holds and a consensus target price of $655.45.
• Deere beat quarterly expectations with $2.42 EPS vs. $1.90 and $9.61 billion in revenue (up 17.5% YoY), and announced a quarterly dividend of $1.62 per share (annualized $6.48, yield ~1.1%).

Mitsubishi UFJ Asset Management Co. Ltd. increased its position in Deere & Company (NYSE:DE - Free Report) by 5.0% in the 4th quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm owned 535,194 shares of the industrial products company's stock after buying an additional 25,356 shares during the quarter. Mitsubishi UFJ Asset Management Co. Ltd. owned 0.20% of Deere & Company worth $249,829,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC).

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently made changes to their positions in the company. Cerro Pacific Wealth Advisors LLC increased its stake in shares of Deere & Company by 0.6% in the fourth quarter. Cerro Pacific Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 3,179 shares of the industrial products company's stock valued at $1,480,000 after buying an additional 19 shares during the period. Verdence Capital Advisors LLC increased its stake in shares of Deere & Company by 2.7% in the fourth quarter. Verdence Capital Advisors LLC now owns 773 shares of the industrial products company's stock valued at $360,000 after buying an additional 20 shares during the period. Bouchey Financial Group Ltd increased its stake in shares of Deere & Company by 4.4% in the third quarter. Bouchey Financial Group Ltd now owns 500 shares of the industrial products company's stock valued at $229,000 after buying an additional 21 shares during the period. Silvant Capital Management LLC increased its stake in shares of Deere & Company by 0.5% in 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 buying an additional 21 shares during the period. Finally, Blue Chip Partners LLC increased its position in Deere & Company by 1.4% during the 2nd 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. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 68.58% of the company's stock.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of research firms have weighed in on DE. Wall Street Zen raised shares of Deere & Company from a "sell" rating to a "hold" rating in a research report on Saturday, February 7th. Robert W. Baird decreased their target price on shares of Deere & Company from $675.00 to $580.00 and set a "neutral" rating for the company in a research report on Thursday, April 2nd. Truist Financial increased their target price on shares of Deere & Company from $612.00 to $793.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a research report on Friday, February 20th. Argus increased their target price on shares of Deere & Company from $540.00 to $700.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a research report on Tuesday, March 3rd. Finally, Bank of America increased their target price on shares of Deere & Company from $502.00 to $672.00 and gave the company a "neutral" rating in a research report on Friday, February 20th. Sixteen analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and nine have issued a Hold rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus target price of $655.45.

Deere & Company Stock Performance

Shares of DE stock opened at $576.15 on Wednesday. The company has a market cap of $155.62 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 32.48, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.02 and a beta of 0.96. Deere & Company has a 52 week low of $433.00 and a 52 week high of $674.19. The company has a quick ratio of 1.96, a current ratio of 2.21 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.59. The firm has a 50 day moving average of $588.64 and a 200-day moving average of $530.94.

Deere & Company (NYSE:DE - Get Free Report) last announced its quarterly earnings data 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. The company had revenue of $9.61 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $7.50 billion. Deere & Company had a net margin of 10.29% and a return on equity of 18.93%. The company's quarterly revenue was up 17.5% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter last year, the firm posted $3.19 EPS. On average, equities analysts forecast that Deere & Company will post 18.01 earnings per share for the current year.

Deere & Company Announces Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, May 8th. Stockholders of record on Tuesday, March 31st will be given a dividend of $1.62 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Tuesday, March 31st. This represents a $6.48 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.1%. Deere & Company's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 36.53%.

About Deere & Company

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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