Prudential Financial Inc. Decreases Stake in Deere & Company (NYSE:DE)

Prudential Financial Inc. lessened its holdings in Deere & Company (NYSE:DE) by 17.1% during the fourth quarter, Holdings Channel.com reports. The institutional investor owned 146,347 shares of the industrial products company’s stock after selling 30,112 shares during the quarter. Prudential Financial Inc.’s holdings in Deere & Company were worth $62,007,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission.

Several other institutional investors also recently modified their holdings of the business. Wellington Management Group LLP grew its stake in Deere & Company by 32.0% in the 3rd quarter. Wellington Management Group LLP now owns 7,352,465 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $3,068,404,000 after purchasing an additional 1,782,984 shares during the period. Geode Capital Management LLC boosted its holdings in shares of Deere & Company by 0.6% in the 3rd quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 5,208,368 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $2,168,737,000 after buying an additional 31,459 shares during the last quarter. FMR LLC grew its position in Deere & Company by 27.8% during the third quarter. FMR LLC now owns 4,542,013 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $1,895,518,000 after buying an additional 988,380 shares during the period. Fisher Asset Management LLC increased its holdings in Deere & Company by 8.1% during the fourth quarter. Fisher Asset Management LLC now owns 2,155,613 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $913,334,000 after buying an additional 160,956 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Bank of New York Mellon Corp boosted its stake in Deere & Company by 5.5% in the fourth quarter. Bank of New York Mellon Corp now owns 2,063,898 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $874,473,000 after acquiring an additional 107,544 shares during the last quarter. 68.58% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Insider Transactions at Deere & Company

In related news, insider Rajesh Kalathur sold 24,580 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, February 18th. The stock was sold at an average price of $500.61, for a total transaction of $12,304,993.80. Following the transaction, the insider now directly owns 74,878 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $37,484,675.58. This trade represents a 24.71 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this link. 0.29% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

Deere & Company Price Performance

Deere & Company stock opened at $480.44 on Tuesday. The stock has a market cap of $130.40 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 21.30, a PEG ratio of 2.14 and a beta of 1.01. The company has a quick ratio of 1.98, a current ratio of 2.22 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.94. The business has a 50-day simple moving average of $474.26 and a 200 day simple moving average of $437.56. Deere & Company has a 52 week low of $340.20 and a 52 week high of $515.05.

Deere & Company (NYSE:DE) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, February 13th. The industrial products company reported $3.19 EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $3.14 by $0.05. Deere & Company had a return on equity of 27.31% and a net margin of 12.94%. On average, research analysts forecast that Deere & Company will post 19.32 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 Thursday, May 8th. Stockholders of record on Monday, March 31st will be given a dividend of $1.62 per share. This represents a $6.48 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.35%. The ex-dividend date is Monday, March 31st. Deere & Company’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 28.72%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several equities research analysts have recently issued reports on DE shares. Jefferies Financial Group lowered shares of Deere & Company from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating and set a $510.00 price target for the company. in a research note on Friday, December 6th. Oppenheimer raised their target price on Deere & Company from $477.00 to $507.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research report on Tuesday, January 28th. Citigroup upped their price target on Deere & Company from $430.00 to $480.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research report on Friday, February 14th. Evercore ISI increased their price target on Deere & Company from $437.00 to $455.00 and gave the stock an “in-line” rating in a research note on Wednesday, February 19th. Finally, Argus set a $510.00 price objective on Deere & Company in a research note on Friday, March 7th. One analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, thirteen have given a hold rating and eight have given a buy rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, Deere & Company presently has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $460.00.

Deere & Company Profile

Deere & Co engages in the manufacture and distribution of equipment used in agriculture, construction, forestry, and turf care. It operates through the following segments: Agriculture and Turf, Construction and Forestry, and Financial Services. The Agriculture and Turf segment focuses on the distribution and manufacture of a full line of agriculture and turf equipment and related service parts.