Union Bancaire Privee UBP SA Takes $3.77 Million Position in Deere & Company (NYSE:DE)

Union Bancaire Privee UBP SA acquired a new position in shares of Deere & Company (NYSE:DE) during the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm acquired 8,859 shares of the industrial products company’s stock, valued at approximately $3,771,000.

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

Deere & Company Stock Performance

NYSE DE opened at $489.98 on Friday. Deere & Company has a 52-week low of $340.20 and a 52-week high of $515.05. The stock has a market cap of $133.45 billion, a PE ratio of 21.72, a P/E/G ratio of 2.14 and a beta of 0.98. The firm has a 50-day moving average of $452.07 and a 200-day moving average of $421.43. 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 posted its earnings results on Thursday, February 13th. The industrial products company reported $3.19 EPS for the quarter, beating 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, sell-side analysts anticipate that Deere & Company will post 19.32 EPS for the current year.

Deere & Company Increases Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, February 10th. Investors of record on Tuesday, December 31st were paid a $1.62 dividend. The ex-dividend date was Tuesday, December 31st. This is an increase from Deere & Company’s previous quarterly dividend of $1.47. This represents a $6.48 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.32%. Deere & Company’s dividend payout ratio is 28.72%.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other news, insider Rajesh Kalathur sold 24,580 shares of the company’s 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 transaction, the insider now owns 74,878 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $37,484,675.58. This represents a 24.71 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available through this hyperlink. 0.29% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of equities analysts recently weighed in on DE shares. Barclays upped their target price on shares of Deere & Company from $400.00 to $475.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research note on Friday, November 22nd. Jefferies Financial Group lowered Deere & Company from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating and set a $510.00 target price on the stock. in a research report on Friday, December 6th. Citigroup upped their price target on Deere & Company from $430.00 to $480.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research report on Friday, February 14th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. lifted their price objective on shares of Deere & Company from $470.00 to $500.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a report on Monday, February 10th. Finally, StockNews.com cut shares of Deere & Company from a “hold” rating to a “sell” rating in a report on Thursday. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, eleven have issued a hold rating and eight have given a buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, Deere & Company currently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $454.65.

Deere & Company 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.