Union Bancaire Privee UBP SA Has $3.61 Million Stake in Deere & Company $DE

Key Points

• Union Bancaire Privée cut its stake in Deere by 21.7%, selling 2,212 shares and leaving it with 7,973 shares valued at about $3.61 million per its latest 13F filing.
• Insider selling: CEO John C. May II sold 41,472 shares for roughly $20.8 million (a 26.01% drop in his holdings) and Cory J. Reed sold 12,000 shares for about $6.12 million.
• Deere beat quarterly estimates (EPS $2.42 vs. $1.90; revenue $9.61B vs. $7.50B, up 17.5% YoY), has a MarketBeat consensus of "Moderate Buy" with an average target of $644.70, and declared a $1.62 quarterly dividend (1.2% yield).

Union Bancaire Privee UBP SA reduced its stake in Deere & Company (NYSE:DE - Free Report) by 21.7% during the 4th quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 7,973 shares of the industrial products company's stock after selling 2,212 shares during the quarter. Union Bancaire Privee UBP SA's holdings in Deere & Company were worth $3,609,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the stock. State Street Corp lifted its holdings in shares of Deere & Company by 0.6% in the second quarter. State Street Corp now owns 10,386,268 shares of the industrial products company's stock valued at $5,297,913,000 after purchasing an additional 64,262 shares in the last quarter. Capital World Investors grew its holdings in shares of Deere & Company by 5.5% during the third quarter. Capital World Investors now owns 6,233,740 shares of the industrial products company's stock worth $2,850,687,000 after buying an additional 322,582 shares in the last quarter. Norges Bank bought a new position in shares of Deere & Company during the second quarter worth about $1,578,243,000. Fisher Asset Management LLC raised its position in 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 buying an additional 141,790 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Invesco Ltd. raised its position in 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 buying an additional 323,512 shares during the last quarter. 68.58% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Insider Buying and Selling at Deere & Company

In other news, CEO John C. May II sold 41,472 shares of the 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 of the company's stock, valued at $59,160,775.30. This represents a 26.01% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this link. Also, insider Cory J. Reed sold 12,000 shares of the firm's 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 sale, the insider owned 20,792 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $10,603,920. This represents a 36.59% decrease in their position. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. 0.29% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Deere & Company Stock Performance

DE opened at $558.81 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 12-month low of $404.42 and a 12-month high of $674.19. The business has a 50 day moving average of $572.75 and a 200-day moving average of $505.84. The stock has a market cap of $150.94 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 31.50, a PEG ratio of 1.98 and a beta of 0.96.

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

Deere & Company Dividend Announcement

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, May 8th. Shareholders of record on Tuesday, March 31st will be given a dividend of $1.62 per share. This represents a $6.48 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.2%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Tuesday, March 31st. Deere & Company's payout ratio is 36.53%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of equities analysts have weighed in on DE shares. Oppenheimer reaffirmed an "outperform" rating and set a $715.00 price target on shares of Deere & Company in a research report on Friday, February 20th. DA Davidson lifted their price objective on shares of Deere & Company from $580.00 to $775.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a report on Friday, February 20th. Weiss Ratings reissued a "hold (c+)" rating on shares of Deere & Company in a research report on Monday, December 29th. Bank of America increased their target price on shares of Deere & Company from $502.00 to $672.00 and gave the stock a "neutral" rating in a report on Friday, February 20th. Finally, Zacks Research raised shares of Deere & Company from a "strong sell" rating to a "hold" rating in a research report on Wednesday, December 3rd. 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 company's stock. According to data from MarketBeat, Deere & Company currently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus target price of $644.70.

Deere & Company 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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