Westpac Banking Corp Raises Stake in Deere & Company $DE

Key Points

• Westpac Banking Corp increased its Deere & Company stake by 73.8% in the first quarter, buying 5,108 more shares and lifting its total position to 12,033 shares worth about $6.78 million.
• Deere reported better-than-expected quarterly results, with EPS of $6.55 versus estimates of $5.70 and revenue of $13.37 billion versus expectations of $11.55 billion. Revenue also rose 5.4% year over year.
• Analysts remain broadly positive on DE, with 14 Buy ratings and 9 Hold ratings, and the stock has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” with an average price target of $642.98. Deere also announced a quarterly dividend of $1.62 per share, payable August 10.

Westpac Banking Corp lifted its stake in shares of Deere & Company (NYSE:DE - Free Report) by 73.8% during the first quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm owned 12,033 shares of the industrial products company's stock after purchasing an additional 5,108 shares during the quarter. Westpac Banking Corp's holdings in Deere & Company were worth $6,778,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other large investors have also made changes to their positions in the stock. Key Capital Management INC acquired a new position in Deere & Company during the fourth quarter worth about $27,000. Timmons Wealth Management LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Deere & Company during the 4th quarter valued at approximately $29,000. McIlrath & Eck LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Deere & Company during the 4th quarter worth approximately $30,000. Portus Wealth Advisors LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Deere & Company during the 1st quarter worth approximately $32,000. Finally, Wealth Watch Advisors INC acquired a new stake in shares of Deere & Company in the 3rd quarter worth approximately $32,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 68.58% of the company's stock.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several equities analysts recently weighed in on DE shares. Jefferies Financial Group raised Deere & Company from an "underperform" rating to a "hold" rating and set a $550.00 price objective for the company in a research note on Wednesday, April 8th. Wall Street Zen upgraded Deere & Company from a "sell" rating to a "hold" rating in a research report on Sunday, July 5th. Raymond James Financial lowered their target price on Deere & Company from $765.00 to $700.00 and set an "outperform" rating on the stock in a report on Friday, May 22nd. Wolfe Research raised their price target on Deere & Company from $550.00 to $660.00 and gave the company an "outperform" rating in a research report on Tuesday, March 31st. Finally, Oppenheimer reaffirmed an "outperform" rating and set a $680.00 price target (down from $715.00) on shares of Deere & Company in a research note on Wednesday, May 27th. Fourteen analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and nine have issued a Hold rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, the company currently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average target price of $642.98.

Deere & Company Trading Up 0.4%

Shares of DE opened at $588.06 on Wednesday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.54, a current ratio of 2.18 and a quick ratio of 1.95. The firm has a 50 day simple moving average of $582.48 and a 200-day simple moving average of $573.70. Deere & Company has a 1-year low of $433.00 and a 1-year high of $674.19. The stock has a market cap of $158.74 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 33.32, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.15 and a beta of 0.89.

Deere & Company (NYSE:DE - Get Free Report) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, May 21st. The industrial products company reported $6.55 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $5.70 by $0.85. The firm had revenue of $13.37 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $11.55 billion. Deere & Company had a return on equity of 18.25% and a net margin of 10.09%.The company's quarterly revenue was up 5.4% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the previous year, the firm posted $6.64 EPS. Equities analysts forecast that Deere & Company will post 18.27 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Deere & Company Dividend Announcement

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, August 10th. Stockholders of record on Tuesday, June 30th will be given a $1.62 dividend. This represents a $6.48 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.1%. The ex-dividend date is Tuesday, June 30th. Deere & Company's dividend payout ratio is currently 36.71%.

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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