Raymond James & Associates Purchases 7,217 Shares of Deere & Company (NYSE:DE)

Raymond James & Associates raised its holdings in shares of Deere & Company (NYSE:DE) by 1.3% during the first quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm owned 574,240 shares of the industrial products company’s stock after acquiring an additional 7,217 shares during the quarter. Raymond James & Associates’ holdings in Deere & Company were worth $235,863,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other large investors have also made changes to their positions in DE. Briaud Financial Planning Inc bought a new position in shares of Deere & Company during the third quarter worth $25,000. True Wealth Design LLC lifted its stake in Deere & Company by 1,180.0% in the 4th quarter. True Wealth Design LLC now owns 64 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $26,000 after purchasing an additional 59 shares in the last quarter. ZRC Wealth Management LLC bought a new position in shares of Deere & Company during the 4th quarter valued at about $28,000. Rakuten Securities Inc. bought a new position in shares of Deere & Company during the 4th quarter valued at about $28,000. Finally, Naples Money Management LLC purchased a new position in shares of Deere & Company during the fourth quarter valued at about $29,000. 68.58% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Deere & Company Trading Down 0.2 %

Deere & Company stock traded down $0.73 during midday trading on Friday, hitting $393.33. 998,338 shares of the stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 1,243,125. The stock’s 50-day simple moving average is $387.86 and its 200 day simple moving average is $383.61. The stock has a market capitalization of $109.49 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 11.45, a PEG ratio of 1.48 and a beta of 1.04. The company has a current ratio of 2.05, a quick ratio of 1.81 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.81. Deere & Company has a fifty-two week low of $345.55 and a fifty-two week high of $450.00.

Deere & Company (NYSE:DE) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, February 15th. The industrial products company reported $6.23 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $5.19 by $1.04. The firm had revenue of $10.49 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $10.30 billion. Deere & Company had a net margin of 16.38% and a return on equity of 44.60%. Deere & Company’s revenue was down 8.0% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the previous year, the firm earned $6.55 EPS. On average, equities analysts anticipate that Deere & Company will post 27.37 EPS for the current year.

Deere & Company Dividend Announcement

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, May 8th. Investors of record on Friday, March 29th will be issued a $1.47 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Wednesday, March 27th. This represents a $5.88 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.49%. Deere & Company’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 17.12%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of analysts have issued reports on DE shares. Truist Financial initiated coverage on Deere & Company in a research note on Thursday, March 14th. They issued a “buy” rating and a $494.00 price objective on the stock. Citigroup decreased their price target on shares of Deere & Company from $450.00 to $435.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a research note on Friday, February 16th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. lifted their price objective on shares of Deere & Company from $415.00 to $425.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research note on Friday, April 12th. Morgan Stanley initiated coverage on shares of Deere & Company in a research report on Monday, January 8th. They set an “overweight” rating and a $430.00 target price on the stock. Finally, Melius downgraded shares of Deere & Company from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Monday, January 8th. Ten equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and nine have given a buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, the company currently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $433.28.

Deere & Company Profile

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.