Madison Asset Management LLC Trims Stake in Deere & Company $DE

Madison Asset Management LLC lessened its holdings in Deere & Company (NYSE:DE) by 34.3% during the 1st quarter, HoldingsChannel.com reports. The firm owned 64,509 shares of the industrial products company’s stock after selling 33,628 shares during the period. Madison Asset Management LLC’s holdings in Deere & Company were worth $36,338,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other hedge funds have also modified their holdings of the company. Key Capital Management INC purchased a new stake in Deere & Company in the 4th quarter valued at about $27,000. Timmons Wealth Management LLC purchased a new position in Deere & Company during the fourth quarter worth about $29,000. McIlrath & Eck LLC purchased a new position in Deere & Company during the fourth quarter worth about $30,000. Portus Wealth Advisors LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Deere & Company during the first quarter valued at about $32,000. Finally, Wealth Watch Advisors INC acquired a new stake in shares of Deere & Company during the third quarter valued at about $32,000. 68.58% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several equities analysts have recently commented on the stock. Truist Financial upped their price objective on shares of Deere & Company from $759.00 to $812.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Thursday, July 2nd. Barclays lifted their target price on shares of Deere & Company from $530.00 to $640.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a report on Tuesday, March 31st. Robert W. Baird cut their target price on Deere & Company from $580.00 to $525.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a research report on Friday, May 22nd. Raymond James Financial decreased their price target on Deere & Company from $765.00 to $700.00 and set an “outperform” rating on the stock in a research note on Friday, May 22nd. Finally, Oppenheimer restated an “outperform” rating and set a $680.00 price target (down from $715.00) on shares of Deere & Company in a research report on Wednesday, May 27th. Fourteen equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and nine have issued a Hold rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, Deere & Company has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $642.98.

Deere & Company Price Performance

Shares of DE opened at $586.13 on Tuesday. Deere & Company has a fifty-two week low of $433.00 and a fifty-two week high of $674.19. The firm’s 50 day moving average price is $582.50 and its 200 day moving average price is $572.84. The company has a market cap of $158.22 billion, a P/E ratio of 33.21, a PEG ratio of 2.21 and a beta of 0.89. The company has a quick ratio of 1.95, a current ratio of 2.18 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.54.

Deere & Company (NYSE:DE) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, May 21st. The industrial products company reported $6.55 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $5.70 by $0.85. The company had revenue of $13.37 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $11.55 billion. Deere & Company had a net margin of 10.09% and a return on equity of 18.25%. The firm’s revenue was up 5.4% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter last year, the company posted $6.64 EPS. On average, research analysts forecast that Deere & Company will post 18.13 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Deere & Company Announces Dividend

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 paid 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 (DPR) is presently 36.71%.

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.