Lazard Asset Management LLC Sells 4,204 Shares of Deere & Company (NYSE:DE)

Lazard Asset Management LLC decreased its stake in Deere & Company (NYSE:DE - Free Report) by 11.6% in the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 32,077 shares of the industrial products company's stock after selling 4,204 shares during the quarter. Lazard Asset Management LLC's holdings in Deere & Company were worth $13,590,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other hedge funds and other institutional investors also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Fiduciary Alliance LLC acquired a new stake in Deere & Company in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $613,000. Wedmont Private Capital lifted its stake in Deere & Company by 8.1% in the fourth quarter. Wedmont Private Capital now owns 2,782 shares of the industrial products company's stock valued at $1,137,000 after acquiring an additional 209 shares during the last quarter. BCS Wealth Management acquired a new stake in Deere & Company in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $287,000. FNY Investment Advisers LLC lifted its stake in Deere & Company by 657.1% in the fourth quarter. FNY Investment Advisers LLC now owns 5,300 shares of the industrial products company's stock valued at $2,245,000 after acquiring an additional 4,600 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Dale Q Rice Investment Management Ltd acquired a new stake in Deere & Company in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $791,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 68.58% of the company's stock.

Deere & Company Stock Performance

NYSE:DE traded up $15.47 during trading hours on Friday, hitting $531.79. 2,322,036 shares of the company traded hands, compared to its average volume of 1,417,561. The stock has a market capitalization of $144.34 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 23.57, a P/E/G ratio of 2.14 and a beta of 1.08. Deere & Company has a twelve month low of $340.20 and a twelve month high of $533.78. The firm has a 50-day moving average of $468.29 and a 200 day moving average of $454.33. The company has a current ratio of 2.22, a quick ratio of 1.98 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.94.

Deere & Company (NYSE:DE - Get Free Report) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, May 15th. The industrial products company reported $6.64 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $5.72 by $0.92. The firm had revenue of $11.17 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $10.80 billion. Deere & Company had a net margin of 12.94% and a return on equity of 27.31%. On average, analysts forecast that Deere & Company will post 19.32 EPS for the current year.

Deere & Company Announces Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, May 8th. Shareholders of record on Monday, March 31st were issued a $1.62 dividend. This represents a $6.48 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.22%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Monday, March 31st. Deere & Company's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 28.72%.

Insider Buying and Selling at Deere & Company

In other news, insider Rajesh Kalathur sold 24,580 shares of the company's stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, February 18th. The shares were sold at an average price of $500.61, for a total value of $12,304,993.80. Following the sale, the insider now owns 74,878 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $37,484,675.58. This represents a 24.71% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through the SEC website. Insiders own 0.29% of the company's stock.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of analysts have issued reports on DE shares. Morgan Stanley lifted their target price on shares of Deere & Company from $450.00 to $500.00 and gave the company an "overweight" rating in a research note on Wednesday, April 16th. Evercore ISI boosted their price objective on shares of Deere & Company from $437.00 to $455.00 and gave the stock an "in-line" rating in a research note on Wednesday, February 19th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. boosted their price objective on shares of Deere & Company from $490.00 to $540.00 and gave the stock a "neutral" rating in a research note on Friday. StockNews.com upgraded shares of Deere & Company from a "sell" rating to a "hold" rating in a research note on Tuesday. Finally, Truist Financial boosted their price objective on shares of Deere & Company from $546.00 to $619.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a research note on Friday. Fourteen research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and seven have assigned a buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company has an average rating of "Hold" and an average target price of $495.00.

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.