Premier Fund Managers Ltd Has $5.91 Million Holdings in Deere & Company (NYSE:DE)

Premier Fund Managers Ltd trimmed its position in shares of Deere & Company (NYSE:DE) by 55.0% during the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund owned 13,909 shares of the industrial products company’s stock after selling 16,990 shares during the period. Premier Fund Managers Ltd’s holdings in Deere & Company were worth $5,908,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission.

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

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several analysts have weighed in on the stock. Jefferies Financial Group cut shares of Deere & Company from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating and set a $510.00 price objective for the company. in a research note on Friday, December 6th. Oppenheimer lifted their price target on shares of Deere & Company from $477.00 to $507.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research report on Tuesday, January 28th. StockNews.com downgraded Deere & Company from a “hold” rating to a “sell” rating in a research report on Saturday, March 1st. Citigroup lifted their price objective on Deere & Company from $430.00 to $480.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a report on Friday, February 14th. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. boosted their price target on Deere & Company from $470.00 to $500.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research note on Monday, February 10th. One analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, thirteen have given a hold rating and eight have issued a buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the company currently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $460.00.

Insider Activity

In other Deere & Company news, insider Rajesh Kalathur sold 24,580 shares of Deere & Company stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, February 18th. The stock was sold at an average price of $500.61, for a total value of $12,304,993.80. Following the completion of the sale, the insider now directly 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 document filed with the SEC, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. Insiders own 0.29% of the company’s stock.

Deere & Company Price Performance

Shares of NYSE:DE opened at $479.69 on Friday. The firm has a market cap of $130.19 billion, a PE ratio of 21.26, a price-to-earnings-growth 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 firm’s fifty day moving average is $477.11 and its 200-day moving average is $438.85. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.94, a quick ratio of 1.98 and a current ratio of 2.22.

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

Deere & Company Announces Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, May 8th. Stockholders of record on Monday, March 31st will be given a $1.62 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Monday, March 31st. This represents a $6.48 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.35%. Deere & Company’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 28.72%.

About Deere & Company

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.