Carret Asset Management LLC Buys 72 Shares of Deere & Company (NYSE:DE)

Carret Asset Management LLC raised its holdings in shares of Deere & Company (NYSE:DE) by 0.9% in the fourth quarter, HoldingsChannel.com reports. The firm owned 8,267 shares of the industrial products company’s stock after buying an additional 72 shares during the period. Carret Asset Management LLC’s holdings in Deere & Company were worth $3,306,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also bought and sold shares of DE. Briaud Financial Planning Inc bought a new stake in Deere & Company during the 3rd quarter valued at $25,000. ZRC Wealth Management LLC bought a new stake in Deere & Company during the 4th quarter valued at $28,000. Rakuten Securities Inc. bought a new stake in Deere & Company during the 4th quarter valued at $28,000. Naples Money Management LLC bought a new stake in Deere & Company during the 4th quarter valued at $29,000. Finally, Bfsg LLC bought a new stake in Deere & Company during the 4th quarter valued at $30,000. Institutional investors own 68.58% of the company’s stock.

Deere & Company Stock Performance

Deere & Company stock traded down $2.59 during midday trading on Wednesday, reaching $394.62. The stock had a trading volume of 944,407 shares, compared to its average volume of 1,480,431. The firm’s 50-day moving average price is $386.42 and its 200 day moving average price is $383.39. Deere & Company has a 12 month low of $345.55 and a 12 month high of $450.00. The firm has a market capitalization of $109.85 billion, a PE ratio of 11.50, a P/E/G ratio of 1.50 and a beta of 1.04. The company has a quick ratio of 1.81, a current ratio of 2.05 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.81.

Deere & Company (NYSE:DE) last announced its quarterly 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 return on equity of 44.60% and a net margin of 16.38%. The firm had revenue of $10.49 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $10.30 billion. During the same period in the prior year, the business posted $6.55 earnings per share. The company’s revenue was down 8.0% on a year-over-year basis. As a group, research analysts predict that Deere & Company will post 27.37 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Deere & Company Dividend Announcement

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, May 8th. Stockholders of record on Friday, March 29th will be given a dividend of $1.47 per share. This represents a $5.88 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.49%. The ex-dividend date is Wednesday, March 27th. Deere & Company’s dividend payout ratio is presently 17.12%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

DE has been the topic of a number of analyst reports. Melius downgraded shares of Deere & Company from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Monday, January 8th. Evercore ISI lifted their price objective on shares of Deere & Company from $381.00 to $387.00 and gave the stock an “in-line” rating in a report on Tuesday, February 20th. Citigroup cut their price objective on shares of Deere & Company from $450.00 to $435.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a report on Friday, February 16th. Melius Research reaffirmed a “hold” rating on shares of Deere & Company in a report on Monday, January 8th. Finally, 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 report on Friday, April 12th. Ten equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and nine have given a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat, Deere & Company has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $433.28.

About Deere & Company

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.