Deere & Company (NYSE:DE) Given Average Rating of “Moderate Buy” by Analysts

Shares of Deere & Company (NYSE:DE) have received an average recommendation of “Moderate Buy” from the twenty-six ratings firms that are currently covering the stock, Marketbeat reports. Ten equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold recommendation, fifteen have given a buy recommendation and one has assigned a strong buy recommendation to the company. The average twelve-month price target among brokerages that have issued a report on the stock in the last year is $522.70.

DE has been the subject of several recent analyst reports. DA Davidson reissued a “buy” rating and issued a $580.00 price target on shares of Deere & Company in a report on Monday, December 1st. JPMorgan Chase & Co. decreased their target price on Deere & Company from $480.00 to $460.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a report on Friday, December 19th. Evercore ISI reiterated a “positive” rating on shares of Deere & Company in a report on Friday, November 28th. Sanford C. Bernstein reissued a “market perform” rating on shares of Deere & Company in a report on Tuesday, December 9th. Finally, Morgan Stanley restated an “overweight” rating and set a $560.00 target price on shares of Deere & Company in a research report on Tuesday, December 9th.

Deere & Company Trading Up 0.2%

NYSE:DE opened at $469.88 on Tuesday. The firm has a 50-day simple moving average of $473.26 and a 200-day simple moving average of $484.34. Deere & Company has a one year low of $403.01 and a one year high of $533.78. The firm has a market cap of $127.08 billion, a P/E ratio of 25.39, a P/E/G ratio of 1.80 and a beta of 1.00. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.68, a quick ratio of 2.01 and a current ratio of 2.22.

Deere & Company (NYSE:DE) last released its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, November 26th. The industrial products company reported $3.93 EPS for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $3.96 by ($0.03). Deere & Company had a return on equity of 20.54% and a net margin of 11.00%.The company had revenue of $12.39 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $9.77 billion. During the same period in the previous year, the firm posted $4.55 earnings per share. The company’s revenue was up 14.1% on a year-over-year basis. Equities analysts anticipate that Deere & Company will post 19.32 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Deere & Company Announces Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, February 9th. Investors of record on Wednesday, December 31st will be paid a $1.62 dividend. This represents a $6.48 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.4%. The ex-dividend date is Wednesday, December 31st. Deere & Company’s payout ratio is currently 35.01%.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other news, CEO John C. May II sold 11,106 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, November 25th. The stock was sold at an average price of $500.08, for a total transaction of $5,553,888.48. Following the sale, the chief executive officer directly owned 112,453 shares in the company, valued at $56,235,496.24. This trade represents a 8.99% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at the SEC website. Corporate insiders own 0.29% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Deere & Company

Large investors have recently modified their holdings of the business. Mid American Wealth Advisory Group Inc. acquired a new position in shares of Deere & Company during the 2nd quarter worth approximately $25,000. Strategic Advocates LLC acquired a new position in Deere & Company during the third quarter worth $25,000. Howard Hughes Medical Institute acquired a new position in Deere & Company during the second quarter worth $27,000. Activest Wealth Management grew its holdings in Deere & Company by 69.2% in the 3rd quarter. Activest Wealth Management now owns 66 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $30,000 after buying an additional 27 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Wealth Watch Advisors INC acquired a new stake in shares of Deere & Company in the 3rd quarter worth $32,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 68.58% of the company’s stock.

About Deere & Company

Deere & Company, commonly known by its brand John Deere, is a global manufacturer of agricultural, construction and forestry machinery, as well as turf care equipment and power systems. Founded in 1837 by blacksmith John Deere—who developed a polished steel plow to improve tillage in tough prairie soils—the company is headquartered in Moline, Illinois, and has grown into one of the largest and most recognizable names in equipment manufacturing worldwide.

The company’s principal businesses include a broad portfolio of agricultural equipment such as tractors, combines, planters, sprayers, harvesters and tillage implements, complemented by precision agriculture technologies and telematics that support farm management, yield optimization and equipment connectivity.