Deere & Company (NYSE:DE) Given New $700.00 Price Target at Argus

Deere & Company (NYSE:DE) had its price target raised by Argus from $540.00 to $700.00 in a report issued on Tuesday,MarketScreener reports. They currently have a buy rating on the industrial products company’s stock.

Other analysts also recently issued reports about the stock. UBS Group raised their target price on shares of Deere & Company from $535.00 to $775.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Friday, February 20th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. dropped their price objective on shares of Deere & Company from $480.00 to $460.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a report on Friday, December 19th. Raymond James Financial reaffirmed an “outperform” rating and issued a $765.00 target price on shares of Deere & Company in a research note on Monday, February 23rd. Morgan Stanley lifted their price target on Deere & Company from $560.00 to $730.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research note on Monday, February 23rd. Finally, Sanford C. Bernstein boosted their price target on Deere & Company from $521.00 to $615.00 and gave the company a “market perform” rating in a report on Friday, February 20th. Sixteen investment analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, eight have issued a Hold rating and one has issued a Sell rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $647.20.

Deere & Company Stock Performance

Shares of Deere & Company stock opened at $618.57 on Tuesday. The stock’s fifty day simple moving average is $544.14 and its 200 day simple moving average is $497.37. The company has a current ratio of 2.21, a quick ratio of 1.96 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.59. The company has a market capitalization of $167.08 billion, a PE ratio of 34.87, a PEG ratio of 2.23 and a beta of 0.96. Deere & Company has a 12 month low of $404.42 and a 12 month high of $674.19.

Deere & Company (NYSE:DE) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, February 19th. The industrial products company reported $2.42 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $1.90 by $0.52. The company had revenue of $9.61 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $7.50 billion. Deere & Company had a return on equity of 18.93% and a net margin of 10.29%.The company’s revenue for the quarter was up 17.5% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the prior year, the company earned $3.19 earnings per share. On average, research analysts predict that Deere & Company will post 19.32 EPS for the current year.

Deere & Company Dividend Announcement

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, May 8th. Stockholders of record on Tuesday, March 31st will be issued a $1.62 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Tuesday, March 31st. This represents a $6.48 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.0%. Deere & Company’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 36.53%.

Insider Transactions at Deere & Company

In related news, CEO John C. May II sold 41,472 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Thursday, January 8th. The stock was sold at an average price of $501.49, for a total transaction of $20,797,793.28. Following the sale, the chief executive officer owned 117,970 shares in the company, valued at approximately $59,160,775.30. This represents a 26.01% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Also, insider Cory J. Reed sold 12,000 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, January 14th. The shares were sold at an average price of $510.00, for a total value of $6,120,000.00. Following the transaction, the insider directly owned 20,792 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $10,603,920. This trade represents a 36.59% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale is available in the SEC filing. 0.29% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Deere & Company

Institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. The Manufacturers Life Insurance Company raised its stake in Deere & Company by 30.6% in the second quarter. The Manufacturers Life Insurance Company now owns 364,103 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $185,143,000 after purchasing an additional 85,351 shares in the last quarter. Csenge Advisory Group grew its stake in Deere & Company by 84.9% during the third quarter. Csenge Advisory Group now owns 7,440 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $3,402,000 after buying an additional 3,416 shares in the last quarter. MASTERINVEST Kapitalanlage GmbH bought a new position in Deere & Company in the 2nd quarter valued at about $3,615,000. WINTON GROUP Ltd acquired a new position in shares of Deere & Company in the 2nd quarter valued at approximately $4,550,000. Finally, Compagnie Lombard Odier SCmA raised its position in shares of Deere & Company by 66.1% in the 3rd quarter. Compagnie Lombard Odier SCmA now owns 27,568 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $12,606,000 after buying an additional 10,974 shares in the last quarter. 68.58% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Deere & Company Company Profile

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.