Harvest Fund Management Co. Ltd Sells 344 Shares of Deere & Company (NYSE:DE)

Harvest Fund Management Co. Ltd reduced its position in Deere & Company (NYSE:DE) by 24.0% during the second quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund owned 1,091 shares of the industrial products company’s stock after selling 344 shares during the period. Harvest Fund Management Co. Ltd’s holdings in Deere & Company were worth $442,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC).

Several other large investors also recently modified their holdings of DE. Renaissance Investment Group LLC grew its position in Deere & Company by 5.0% during the second quarter. Renaissance Investment Group LLC now owns 13,468 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $5,457,000 after buying an additional 643 shares during the period. Fulton Bank N.A. boosted its stake in shares of Deere & Company by 38.8% during the 2nd quarter. Fulton Bank N.A. now owns 4,237 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $1,717,000 after acquiring an additional 1,184 shares during the last quarter. Apella Capital LLC bought a new stake in shares of Deere & Company during the 2nd quarter valued at $859,000. Abner Herrman & Brock LLC grew its position in shares of Deere & Company by 1.6% during the 2nd quarter. Abner Herrman & Brock LLC now owns 35,433 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $14,357,000 after acquiring an additional 559 shares during the period. Finally, Wiley BROS. Aintree Capital LLC increased its stake in shares of Deere & Company by 3.1% in the 2nd quarter. Wiley BROS. Aintree Capital LLC now owns 1,660 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $673,000 after purchasing an additional 50 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors own 66.27% of the company’s stock.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In related news, CEO John C. May II sold 52,967 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Thursday, June 22nd. The shares were sold at an average price of $416.02, for a total value of $22,035,331.34. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief executive officer now owns 109,126 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $45,398,598.52. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. In other news, CEO John C. May II sold 52,967 shares of the business’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 transaction of $22,035,331.34. Following the transaction, the chief executive officer now owns 109,126 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $45,398,598.52. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is accessible through the SEC website. Also, insider Cory J. Reed sold 4,680 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Tuesday, July 25th. The stock was sold at an average price of $449.75, for a total value of $2,104,830.00. Following the completion of the sale, the insider now owns 36,563 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $16,444,209.25. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Corporate insiders own 0.26% of the company’s stock.

Deere & Company Price Performance

Shares of Deere & Company stock opened at $411.68 on Friday. The firm has a market cap of $118.56 billion, a PE ratio of 12.17, a PEG ratio of 0.91 and a beta of 1.07. The stock has a 50 day moving average of $417.46 and a 200 day moving average of $399.13. The company has a current ratio of 1.98, a quick ratio of 1.74 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.65. Deere & Company has a 12 month low of $328.62 and a 12 month high of $450.00.

Deere & Company (NYSE:DE) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Friday, August 18th. The industrial products company reported $10.20 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $8.22 by $1.98. Deere & Company had a return on equity of 46.15% and a net margin of 16.36%. The business had revenue of $14.28 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $14.14 billion. During the same period in the prior year, the firm earned $6.16 EPS. The company’s revenue for the quarter was up 9.9% on a year-over-year basis. On average, research analysts expect that Deere & Company will post 33.9 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Deere & Company Increases Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, November 8th. Shareholders of record on Friday, September 29th will be given a dividend of $1.35 per share. The ex-dividend date is Thursday, September 28th. This represents a $5.40 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.31%. This is a positive change from Deere & Company’s previous quarterly dividend of $1.25. Deere & Company’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 14.78%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several research firms have issued reports on DE. Oppenheimer cut their price target on Deere & Company from $467.00 to $458.00 and set an “outperform” rating for the company in a report on Monday, August 21st. Bank of America increased their target price on shares of Deere & Company from $455.00 to $484.00 in a report on Sunday, August 20th. StockNews.com started coverage on shares of Deere & Company in a report on Thursday, August 17th. They set a “hold” rating on the stock. Wells Fargo & Company reduced their price objective on shares of Deere & Company from $510.00 to $490.00 in a research note on Monday, May 22nd. Finally, Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft raised their price objective on shares of Deere & Company from $398.00 to $407.00 and gave the company a “hold” rating in a research report on Monday, August 21st. Six investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and thirteen have issued a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $459.90.

About Deere & Company

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.