QRG Capital Management Inc. Acquires 3,199 Shares of Deere & Company $DE

Key Points

• QRG Capital Management Inc. increased its stake in Deere & Company by 8.7%, acquiring an additional 3,199 shares, bringing their total holdings to 40,092 shares valued at approximately $20.39 million.
• Deere reported $4.75 earnings per share for the last quarter, surpassing estimates, but its revenue fell by 9% year-over-year.
• The company declared a $1.62 quarterly dividend with a yield of 1.4%, to be paid on November 10th, and its dividend payout ratio stands at 33.87%.

QRG Capital Management Inc. raised its stake in shares of Deere & Company (NYSE:DE - Free Report) by 8.7% in the second quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the SEC. The fund owned 40,092 shares of the industrial products company's stock after purchasing an additional 3,199 shares during the period. QRG Capital Management Inc.'s holdings in Deere & Company were worth $20,386,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently modified their holdings of the stock. Activest Wealth Management lifted its stake in Deere & Company by 2,750.0% during the 1st quarter. Activest Wealth Management now owns 57 shares of the industrial products company's stock valued at $27,000 after acquiring an additional 55 shares in the last quarter. Hughes Financial Services LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Deere & Company in the first quarter valued at about $29,000. Cornerstone Planning Group LLC lifted its position in shares of Deere & Company by 116.1% during the first quarter. Cornerstone Planning Group LLC now owns 67 shares of the industrial products company's stock valued at $31,000 after purchasing an additional 36 shares in the last quarter. Marshall & Sullivan Inc. WA purchased a new position in Deere & Company during the second quarter worth about $38,000. Finally, Livelsberger Financial Advisory bought a new stake in Deere & Company in the 2nd quarter worth about $39,000. 68.58% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Deere & Company Trading Up 0.2%

Shares of DE opened at $462.59 on Friday. Deere & Company has a fifty-two week low of $387.03 and a fifty-two week high of $533.78. The business has a 50-day moving average of $484.64 and a 200 day moving average of $489.15. The firm has a market cap of $125.05 billion, a P/E ratio of 24.18, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.98 and a beta of 1.02. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.76, a quick ratio of 1.98 and a current ratio of 2.19.

Deere & Company (NYSE:DE - Get Free Report) last issued its earnings results on Thursday, August 14th. The industrial products company reported $4.75 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates of $4.62 by $0.13. The firm had revenue of $10.36 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $10.33 billion. Deere & Company had a net margin of 11.72% and a return on equity of 21.97%. The company's quarterly revenue was down 9.0% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter last year, the business earned $6.29 earnings per share. As a group, research analysts forecast that Deere & Company will post 19.32 EPS for the current year.

Deere & Company Announces Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, November 10th. Investors of record on Tuesday, September 30th will be issued a $1.62 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Tuesday, September 30th. This represents a $6.48 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.4%. Deere & Company's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 33.87%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several equities analysts have commented on DE shares. Robert W. Baird dropped their target price on shares of Deere & Company from $520.00 to $488.00 and set a "neutral" rating on the stock in a research report on Friday, August 15th. Daiwa Capital Markets decreased their price target on Deere & Company from $565.00 to $530.00 and set an "outperform" rating for the company in a research report on Thursday, September 25th. Weiss Ratings reissued a "hold (c+)" rating on shares of Deere & Company in a research report on Saturday, September 27th. Wolfe Research decreased their target price on Deere & Company from $550.00 to $520.00 and set an "outperform" rating for the company in a research report on Friday. Finally, Wall Street Zen upgraded Deere & Company from a "sell" rating to a "hold" rating in a research note on Saturday. One analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, ten have given a Buy rating and ten have assigned a Hold rating to the company's stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, Deere & Company currently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus price target of $518.18.

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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