Deere & Company (NYSE:DE) Shares Sold by Zurcher Kantonalbank Zurich Cantonalbank

Zurcher Kantonalbank Zurich Cantonalbank reduced its stake in shares of Deere & Company (NYSE:DE) by 16.3% during the 4th quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor owned 106,167 shares of the industrial products company’s stock after selling 20,623 shares during the quarter. Zurcher Kantonalbank Zurich Cantonalbank’s holdings in Deere & Company were worth $44,983,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently bought and sold shares of DE. Pineridge Advisors LLC raised its stake in Deere & Company by 60.5% during the 4th quarter. Pineridge Advisors LLC now owns 69 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $29,000 after acquiring an additional 26 shares in the last quarter. Modus Advisors LLC acquired a new position in Deere & Company in the fourth quarter valued at $32,000. YANKCOM Partnership acquired a new position in Deere & Company in the fourth quarter valued at $34,000. Synergy Asset Management LLC acquired a new position in Deere & Company in the fourth quarter valued at $35,000. Finally, Continuum Advisory LLC increased its stake in Deere & Company by 155.8% in the third quarter. Continuum Advisory LLC now owns 110 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $43,000 after purchasing an additional 67 shares during the period. 68.58% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Deere & Company Stock Down 2.2 %

DE stock opened at $488.69 on Tuesday. The company has a market cap of $132.64 billion, a P/E ratio of 21.66, a P/E/G ratio of 2.14 and a beta of 1.01. Deere & Company has a 52 week low of $340.20 and a 52 week high of $515.05. The company’s 50-day moving average price is $462.49 and its 200 day moving average price is $430.99. The company has a current ratio of 2.22, a quick ratio of 1.98 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.94.

Deere & Company (NYSE:DE) last announced its earnings results on Thursday, February 13th. The industrial products company reported $3.19 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $3.14 by $0.05. Deere & Company had a net margin of 12.94% and a return on equity of 27.31%. On average, research analysts expect that Deere & Company will post 19.32 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Deere & Company Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, May 8th. Shareholders of record on Monday, March 31st will be given a dividend of $1.62 per share. This represents a $6.48 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.33%. The ex-dividend date is Monday, March 31st. Deere & Company’s payout ratio is currently 28.72%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of research firms have commented on DE. StockNews.com lowered shares of Deere & Company from a “hold” rating to a “sell” rating in a research note on Saturday, March 1st. Argus set a $510.00 price objective on shares of Deere & Company in a research note on Friday. Oppenheimer lifted their price objective on shares of Deere & Company from $477.00 to $507.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research note on Tuesday, January 28th. Baird R W lowered shares of Deere & Company from a “strong-buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Monday, March 3rd. Finally, Evercore ISI lifted their target price on shares of Deere & Company from $437.00 to $455.00 and gave the company an “in-line” rating in a report on Wednesday, February 19th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, thirteen have given a hold rating and eight have issued a buy rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company presently has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $460.00.

Insiders Place Their Bets

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

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.