Panagora Asset Management Inc. Reduces Position in Deere & Company (NYSE:DE)

Panagora Asset Management Inc. decreased its holdings in Deere & Company (NYSE:DE) by 3.7% in the first quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the SEC. The fund owned 29,528 shares of the industrial products company’s stock after selling 1,141 shares during the quarter. Panagora Asset Management Inc.’s holdings in Deere & Company were worth $12,192,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also bought and sold shares of DE. ETF Managers Group LLC increased its position in shares of Deere & Company by 1.5% during the first quarter. ETF Managers Group LLC now owns 1,746 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $721,000 after purchasing an additional 26 shares in the last quarter. St. Johns Investment Management Company LLC boosted its position in shares of Deere & Company by 1.0% during the 4th quarter. St. Johns Investment Management Company LLC now owns 2,655 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $1,138,000 after purchasing an additional 27 shares during the period. Liberty One Investment Management LLC lifted its stake in Deere & Company by 0.5% during the fourth quarter. Liberty One Investment Management LLC now owns 6,016 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $2,579,000 after purchasing an additional 27 shares in the last quarter. Wedge Capital Management L L P NC boosted its holdings in Deere & Company by 5.3% during the 1st quarter. Wedge Capital Management L L P NC now owns 537 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $222,000 after acquiring an additional 27 shares during the period. Finally, All Season Financial Advisors Inc. boosted its position in Deere & Company by 3.4% in the 1st quarter. All Season Financial Advisors Inc. now owns 860 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $355,000 after buying an additional 28 shares during the period. Institutional investors own 66.27% of the company’s stock.

Insider Activity

In other news, insider Cory J. Reed sold 4,680 shares of Deere & Company stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, July 25th. The shares were sold at an average price of $449.75, for a total value of $2,104,830.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider now directly owns 36,563 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $16,444,209.25. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this link. In related news, CEO John C. May II sold 52,967 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, June 22nd. The stock was sold at an average price of $416.02, for a total value of $22,035,331.34. Following the sale, the chief executive officer now directly owns 109,126 shares in the company, valued at approximately $45,398,598.52. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. Also, insider Cory J. Reed sold 4,680 shares of Deere & Company stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, July 25th. The shares were sold at an average price of $449.75, for a total transaction of $2,104,830.00. Following the sale, the insider now owns 36,563 shares in the company, valued at $16,444,209.25. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last ninety days, insiders sold 85,580 shares of company stock worth $34,799,115. 0.26% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

Deere & Company Price Performance

DE stock opened at $414.60 on Thursday. Deere & Company has a 52-week low of $328.62 and a 52-week high of $450.00. The company has a quick ratio of 1.74, a current ratio of 1.98 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.65. The company has a market capitalization of $121.56 billion, a PE ratio of 12.21, a P/E/G ratio of 0.90 and a beta of 1.06. The stock’s 50 day moving average is $416.98 and its two-hundred day moving average is $399.88.

Deere & Company (NYSE:DE) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Friday, August 18th. The industrial products company reported $10.20 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $8.22 by $1.98. The firm had revenue of $14.28 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $14.14 billion. Deere & Company had a net margin of 16.36% and a return on equity of 46.15%. The firm’s revenue was up 9.9% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the prior year, the firm posted $6.16 EPS. Analysts predict that Deere & Company will post 33.59 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Deere & Company Increases Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, November 8th. Shareholders of record on Friday, September 29th will be issued a dividend of $1.35 per share. This represents a $5.40 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.30%. This is an increase from Deere & Company’s previous quarterly dividend of $1.25. Deere & Company’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 14.78%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

DE has been the subject of a number of recent analyst reports. Citigroup lifted their price target on Deere & Company from $460.00 to $475.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Tuesday, July 18th. Sanford C. Bernstein decreased their price target on Deere & Company from $398.00 to $367.00 in a research note on Monday, May 15th. BMO Capital Markets dropped their target price on shares of Deere & Company from $450.00 to $425.00 in a report on Monday, June 5th. StockNews.com assumed coverage on shares of Deere & Company in a research report on Thursday, August 17th. They issued a “hold” rating on the stock. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. lowered their target price on shares of Deere & Company from $390.00 to $380.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a research note on Monday, August 21st. Six investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and twelve have given a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $458.53.

Deere & Company Company Profile

Deere & Company manufactures and distributes 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 mid-size tractors, combines, cotton pickers and strippers, sugarcane harvesters, harvesting front-end equipment, sugarcane loaders, 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.