M&T Bank Corp Trims Stock Holdings in Deere & Company $DE

Key Points

• M&T Bank Corp trimmed its stake in Deere & Company by 4.4% in the third quarter, selling 6,622 shares and reducing its holdings to 143,462 shares valued at about $65.6 million (roughly 0.05% of the company).
• Deere reported a quarterly earnings beat (EPS $2.42 vs. $1.90) and revenue of $9.61 billion, prompting multiple analyst price-target increases (UBS $775, Argus $700, RBC $736) and a MarketBeat consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" with a consensus price target of $644.70.

M&T Bank Corp lowered its stake in shares of Deere & Company (NYSE:DE - Free Report) by 4.4% during the 3rd quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor owned 143,462 shares of the industrial products company's stock after selling 6,622 shares during the period. M&T Bank Corp owned 0.05% of Deere & Company worth $65,599,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other hedge funds also recently made changes to their positions in DE. Brighton Jones LLC increased its position in shares of Deere & Company by 39.1% during the fourth quarter. Brighton Jones LLC now owns 4,548 shares of the industrial products company's stock valued at $1,927,000 after buying an additional 1,278 shares during the period. Schnieders Capital Management LLC. increased its holdings in Deere & Company by 7.8% during the 2nd quarter. Schnieders Capital Management LLC. now owns 2,076 shares of the industrial products company's stock worth $1,056,000 after acquiring an additional 150 shares during the period. Connor Clark & Lunn Investment Management Ltd. bought a new stake in Deere & Company during the 2nd quarter worth approximately $2,399,000. SBI Securities Co. Ltd. lifted its stake in Deere & Company by 2.5% in the 2nd quarter. SBI Securities Co. Ltd. now owns 994 shares of the industrial products company's stock worth $505,000 after purchasing an additional 24 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Wealth Alliance LLC boosted its holdings in Deere & Company by 18.0% in the 2nd quarter. Wealth Alliance LLC now owns 569 shares of the industrial products company's stock valued at $289,000 after purchasing an additional 87 shares during the period. 68.58% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several research analysts have recently weighed in on DE shares. Argus upped their price target on shares of Deere & Company from $540.00 to $700.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a report on Tuesday, March 3rd. Wolfe Research boosted their target price on Deere & Company from $520.00 to $550.00 and gave the stock an "outperform" rating in a research report on Friday, January 2nd. Wall Street Zen upgraded Deere & Company from a "sell" rating to a "hold" rating in a research note on Saturday, February 7th. UBS Group raised their price target on Deere & Company from $535.00 to $775.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a report on Friday, February 20th. Finally, Royal Bank Of Canada lifted their price target on Deere & Company from $541.00 to $736.00 and gave the company an "outperform" rating in a research report on Friday, February 20th. Sixteen investment analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, eight have assigned a Hold rating and one has given a Sell rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company presently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus price target of $644.70.

Deere & Company Stock Performance

Deere & Company stock opened at $577.42 on Friday. Deere & Company has a fifty-two week low of $404.42 and a fifty-two week high of $674.19. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.59, a quick ratio of 1.96 and a current ratio of 2.21. The stock has a market cap of $155.97 billion, a P/E ratio of 32.55, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.05 and a beta of 0.96. The firm's fifty day moving average price is $564.21 and its 200-day moving average price is $502.98.

Deere & Company (NYSE:DE - Get Free Report) last announced its earnings results 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. The company had revenue of $9.61 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $7.50 billion. Deere & Company had a net margin of 10.29% and a return on equity of 18.93%. The firm's quarterly revenue was up 17.5% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the previous year, the business earned $3.19 earnings per share. On average, equities research analysts expect that Deere & Company will post 19.32 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Deere & Company Announces Dividend

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

Insider Activity

In other news, insider Cory J. Reed sold 12,000 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, January 14th. The stock was sold at an average price of $510.00, for a total transaction of $6,120,000.00. Following the transaction, the insider directly owned 20,792 shares in the company, valued at approximately $10,603,920. This represents a 36.59% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this link. Also, CEO John C. May II sold 41,472 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction dated Thursday, January 8th. The shares were sold at an average price of $501.49, for a total value of $20,797,793.28. Following the transaction, the chief executive officer directly owned 117,970 shares in the company, valued at approximately $59,160,775.30. This represents a 26.01% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale is available in the SEC filing. 0.29% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

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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