Cutler Investment Counsel LLC Has $14.96 Million Stock Holdings in Deere & Company (NYSE:DE)

Cutler Investment Counsel LLC cut its position in shares of Deere & Company (NYSE:DE - Free Report) by 24.1% during the 4th quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund owned 37,273 shares of the industrial products company's stock after selling 11,850 shares during the quarter. Deere & Company accounts for about 2.1% of Cutler Investment Counsel LLC's investment portfolio, making the stock its 14th largest holding. Cutler Investment Counsel LLC's holdings in Deere & Company were worth $14,959,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other large investors have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Pinnacle Associates Ltd. increased its position in Deere & Company by 21.3% in the fourth quarter. Pinnacle Associates Ltd. now owns 5,355 shares of the industrial products company's stock worth $2,141,000 after buying an additional 939 shares during the period. Penserra Capital Management LLC increased its position in Deere & Company by 2.4% in the third quarter. Penserra Capital Management LLC now owns 236,696 shares of the industrial products company's stock worth $89,322,000 after buying an additional 5,485 shares during the period. New Mexico Educational Retirement Board increased its position in Deere & Company by 6.9% in the third quarter. New Mexico Educational Retirement Board now owns 14,002 shares of the industrial products company's stock worth $5,284,000 after buying an additional 900 shares during the period. Centric Wealth Management acquired a new stake in Deere & Company in the third quarter worth $2,640,000. Finally, Graham Capital Management L.P. increased its holdings in shares of Deere & Company by 483.3% during the third quarter. Graham Capital Management L.P. now owns 17,500 shares of the industrial products company's stock valued at $6,604,000 after purchasing an additional 14,500 shares during the period. 68.58% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of research analysts have recently commented on the company. Melius Research reissued a "hold" rating on shares of Deere & Company in a report on Monday, January 8th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. raised their price target on Deere & Company from $415.00 to $425.00 and gave the company a "neutral" rating in a report on Friday, April 12th. Citigroup lowered their price target on Deere & Company from $450.00 to $435.00 and set a "buy" rating on the stock in a report on Friday, February 16th. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft lowered their price target on Deere & Company from $425.00 to $401.00 and set a "hold" rating on the stock in a report on Friday, February 16th. Finally, Evercore ISI raised their price target on Deere & Company from $381.00 to $387.00 and gave the company an "in-line" rating in a report on Tuesday, February 20th. Ten investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and nine have given a buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock presently has an average rating of "Hold" and a consensus price target of $433.28.

Deere & Company Trading Down 0.1 %

Shares of NYSE:DE traded down $0.21 during midday trading on Friday, reaching $400.39. The company had a trading volume of 1,125,178 shares, compared to its average volume of 1,496,266. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.81, a quick ratio of 1.81 and a current ratio of 2.05. Deere & Company has a 1-year low of $345.55 and a 1-year high of $450.00. The firm has a market cap of $111.45 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 11.65, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.49 and a beta of 1.04. The company has a fifty day simple moving average of $385.47 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $382.79.

Deere & Company (NYSE:DE - Get Free Report) last released its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, February 15th. The industrial products company reported $6.23 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts' consensus estimates of $5.19 by $1.04. Deere & Company had a return on equity of 44.60% and a net margin of 16.38%. The business had revenue of $10.49 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $10.30 billion. During the same quarter last year, the company posted $6.55 EPS. Deere & Company's revenue for the quarter was down 8.0% on a year-over-year basis. Research analysts predict that Deere & Company will post 27.39 earnings per share for the current year.

Deere & Company Announces Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, May 8th. Shareholders of record on Friday, March 29th will be given a dividend of $1.47 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Wednesday, March 27th. This represents a $5.88 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.47%. Deere & Company's payout ratio is presently 17.12%.

About Deere & Company

Deere & Company engages in the manufacture and distribution of various equipment worldwide. The company operates through four segments: Production and Precision Agriculture, Small Agriculture and Turf, Construction and Forestry, and Financial Services. The Production and Precision Agriculture segment provides large and medium tractors, combines, cotton pickers and strippers, sugarcane harvesters and loaders, harvesting front-end equipment, pull-behind scrapers, and tillage and seeding equipment, as well as application equipment, including sprayers and nutrient management, and soil preparation machinery for grain growers.