United Asset Strategies Inc. Buys 3,592 Shares of Deere & Company $DE

Key Points

• United Asset Strategies Inc. increased its stake in Deere & Company by 50.4%, buying an additional 3,592 shares to hold 10,718 shares worth about $4.99 million at the time of the SEC filing.
• Deere posted a quarterly beat with $2.42 EPS vs. $1.90 expected 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%).
• Analysts are broadly positive with a consensus of "Moderate Buy" (16 Buys, 9 Holds) and an average target of $655.45, with several firms raising targets up to $793 (Truist) and $715 (Oppenheimer).

United Asset Strategies Inc. lifted its stake in shares of Deere & Company (NYSE:DE - Free Report) by 50.4% in the fourth quarter, according to its most recent filing with the SEC. The fund owned 10,718 shares of the industrial products company's stock after acquiring an additional 3,592 shares during the period. United Asset Strategies Inc.'s holdings in Deere & Company were worth $4,990,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other hedge funds also recently made changes to their positions in DE. Strategic Advocates LLC bought a new stake in shares of Deere & Company during the 3rd quarter worth $25,000. Key Capital Management INC bought a new stake in shares of Deere & Company during the 4th quarter worth $27,000. Activest Wealth Management lifted its holdings in shares of Deere & Company by 69.2% during the 3rd quarter. Activest Wealth Management now owns 66 shares of the industrial products company's stock worth $30,000 after acquiring an additional 27 shares during the last quarter. Wealth Watch Advisors INC bought a new stake in shares of Deere & Company during the 3rd quarter worth $32,000. Finally, United Community Bank lifted its holdings in shares of Deere & Company by 67.3% during the 3rd quarter. United Community Bank now owns 92 shares of the industrial products company's stock worth $42,000 after acquiring an additional 37 shares during the last quarter. 68.58% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Analyst Ratings Changes

DE has been the subject of a number of research analyst reports. Barclays lifted their price objective on shares of Deere & Company from $530.00 to $640.00 and gave the stock an "overweight" rating in a report on Tuesday, March 31st. Oppenheimer reissued an "outperform" rating and issued a $715.00 price target on shares of Deere & Company in a research note on Friday, February 20th. Truist Financial boosted their price target on shares of Deere & Company from $612.00 to $793.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a research note on Friday, February 20th. Wall Street Zen raised shares of Deere & Company from a "sell" rating to a "hold" rating in a research note on Saturday, February 7th. Finally, BMO Capital Markets boosted their price target on shares of Deere & Company from $460.00 to $500.00 and gave the stock a "market perform" rating in a research note on Friday, February 20th. Sixteen equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and nine have given a Hold rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average target price of $655.45.

Deere & Company Stock Performance

Deere & Company stock opened at $580.27 on Thursday. 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 company has a market capitalization of $156.74 billion, a PE ratio of 32.71, a P/E/G ratio of 2.05 and a beta of 0.98. The firm has a fifty day simple moving average of $594.50 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $524.44. Deere & Company has a twelve month low of $433.00 and a twelve month high of $674.19.

Deere & Company (NYSE:DE - Get Free Report) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, February 19th. The industrial products company reported $2.42 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $1.90 by $0.52. The business 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 firm's revenue for the quarter was up 17.5% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the previous year, the firm posted $3.19 earnings per share. Research analysts expect that Deere & Company will post 18 EPS for the current 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 paid a dividend of $1.62 per share. This represents a $6.48 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.1%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Tuesday, March 31st. Deere & Company's dividend payout ratio is 36.53%.

Deere & 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.

This instant news alert was generated by narrative science technology and financial data from MarketBeat in order to provide readers with the fastest reporting and unbiased coverage. Please send any questions or comments about this story to contact@marketbeat.com.