Merit Financial Group LLC Lowers Stake in Deere & Company (NYSE:DE)

Merit Financial Group LLC decreased its position in shares of Deere & Company (NYSE:DE) by 61.4% during the 4th quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the SEC. The firm owned 2,793 shares of the industrial products company’s stock after selling 4,437 shares during the period. Merit Financial Group LLC’s holdings in Deere & Company were worth $1,117,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other hedge funds have also recently bought and sold shares of the company. Briaud Financial Planning Inc acquired a new position in Deere & Company in the third quarter valued at $25,000. ZRC Wealth Management LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Deere & Company during the fourth quarter worth about $28,000. Rakuten Securities Inc. purchased a new stake in shares of Deere & Company during the fourth quarter worth about $28,000. Naples Money Management LLC bought a new stake in Deere & Company in the fourth quarter valued at about $29,000. Finally, Bfsg LLC bought a new stake in Deere & Company in the fourth quarter valued at about $30,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 68.58% of the company’s stock.

Deere & Company Stock Up 1.3 %

NYSE DE opened at $400.96 on Monday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.81, a quick ratio of 1.81 and a current ratio of 2.05. The firm has a 50-day simple moving average of $391.45 and a 200 day simple moving average of $383.87. Deere & Company has a twelve month low of $345.55 and a twelve month high of $450.00. The stock has a market cap of $111.61 billion, a PE ratio of 11.68, a PEG ratio of 1.51 and a beta of 1.04.

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

Deere & Company Dividend Announcement

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, May 8th. Stockholders of record on Friday, March 29th will be issued a dividend of $1.47 per share. This represents a $5.88 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.47%. The ex-dividend date is Wednesday, March 27th. Deere & Company’s payout ratio is 17.12%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several analysts recently weighed in on the company. Citigroup lowered their price objective on Deere & Company from $450.00 to $435.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a report on Friday, February 16th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. upped their target price on Deere & Company from $415.00 to $425.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a report on Friday, April 12th. Wells Fargo & Company lowered their target price on Deere & Company from $445.00 to $425.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a report on Friday, February 16th. Melius lowered Deere & Company from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Monday, January 8th. Finally, Truist Financial began coverage on Deere & Company in a report on Thursday, March 14th. They set a “buy” rating and a $494.00 target price for the company. Ten research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and nine have assigned a buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, Deere & Company currently has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus 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.