Wetzel Investment Advisors Inc. Invests $90,000 in Deere & Company (NYSE:DE)

Wetzel Investment Advisors Inc. acquired a new position in shares of Deere & Company (NYSE:DE) during the 4th quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the SEC. The institutional investor acquired 225 shares of the industrial products company’s stock, valued at approximately $90,000.

Several other hedge funds have also modified their holdings of DE. Briaud Financial Planning Inc purchased a new stake in shares of Deere & Company during the 3rd quarter worth approximately $25,000. Retirement Group LLC raised its holdings in Deere & Company by 264.7% during the 2nd quarter. Retirement Group LLC now owns 62 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $25,000 after buying an additional 45 shares during the period. ZRC Wealth Management LLC purchased a new stake in Deere & Company during the 4th quarter valued at $28,000. Rakuten Securities Inc. purchased a new stake in Deere & Company during the 4th quarter valued at $28,000. Finally, Worth Asset Management LLC purchased a new stake in Deere & Company during the 1st quarter valued at $28,000. 68.58% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

DE has been the topic of several recent research reports. JPMorgan Chase & Co. increased 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 decreased 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 decreased 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. Stifel Nicolaus cut their price objective on Deere & Company from $435.00 to $425.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a research report on Friday, February 16th. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company cut their price objective on Deere & Company from $445.00 to $425.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a research report on Friday, February 16th. Ten analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and nine have given a buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the company currently has an average rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $433.28.

Deere & Company Price Performance

DE opened at $400.32 on Friday. Deere & Company has a 12-month low of $345.55 and a 12-month high of $450.00. The company has a current ratio of 2.05, a quick ratio of 1.81 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.81. The business’s fifty day simple moving average is $385.86 and its 200-day simple moving average is $383.05. The company has a market capitalization of $111.43 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 11.66, a PEG ratio of 1.50 and a beta of 1.04.

Deere & Company (NYSE:DE) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, February 15th. The industrial products company reported $6.23 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping 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 for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $10.30 billion. During the same quarter in the prior year, the company earned $6.55 EPS. The business’s revenue was down 8.0% compared to the same quarter last year. On average, equities research analysts anticipate that Deere & Company will post 27.4 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 Wednesday, May 8th. Investors of record on Friday, March 29th will be given a dividend of $1.47 per share. This represents a $5.88 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.47%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Wednesday, March 27th. Deere & Company’s payout ratio is currently 17.12%.

Deere & Company 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.