Hazlett Burt & Watson Inc. Sells 76 Shares of Deere & Company (NYSE:DE)

Hazlett Burt & Watson Inc. reduced its position in shares of Deere & Company (NYSE:DE) by 7.4% in the fourth quarter, Holdings Channel reports. The firm owned 956 shares of the industrial products company’s stock after selling 76 shares during the period. Hazlett Burt & Watson Inc.’s holdings in Deere & Company were worth $406,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other institutional investors have also recently made changes to their positions in DE. Pineridge Advisors LLC raised its stake in Deere & Company by 60.5% in the fourth 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 in the last quarter. Modus Advisors LLC bought a new position in shares of Deere & Company in the 4th quarter worth $32,000. YANKCOM Partnership purchased a new stake in shares of Deere & Company during the 4th quarter valued at $34,000. Synergy Asset Management LLC bought a new stake in shares of Deere & Company during the 4th quarter worth $35,000. Finally, Sierra Ocean LLC purchased a new position in Deere & Company in the fourth quarter worth $44,000. Institutional investors own 68.58% of the company’s stock.

Deere & Company Price Performance

NYSE DE opened at $465.27 on Monday. Deere & Company has a one year low of $340.20 and a one year high of $515.05. The stock has a 50-day moving average of $477.28 and a 200 day moving average of $440.12. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.94, a quick ratio of 1.98 and a current ratio of 2.22. The company has a market capitalization of $126.28 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 20.62, a PEG ratio of 2.14 and a beta of 1.01.

Deere & Company (NYSE:DE) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, February 13th. The industrial products company reported $3.19 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, sell-side analysts forecast that Deere & Company will post 19.32 EPS 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 issued a dividend of $1.62 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, March 31st. This represents a $6.48 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.39%. Deere & Company’s payout ratio is 28.72%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several brokerages have issued reports on DE. Jefferies Financial Group lowered Deere & Company from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating and set a $510.00 price target for the company. in a research note on Friday, December 6th. Baird R W downgraded Deere & Company from a “strong-buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Monday, March 3rd. Citigroup increased their price target on shares of Deere & Company from $430.00 to $480.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research report on Friday, February 14th. Evercore ISI boosted their price objective on shares of Deere & Company from $437.00 to $455.00 and gave the stock an “in-line” rating in a report on Wednesday, February 19th. Finally, Oppenheimer increased their target price on shares of Deere & Company from $477.00 to $507.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a report on Tuesday, January 28th. Fourteen investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and eight have given a buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, Deere & Company has an average rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $460.00.

Insider Transactions at Deere & Company

In other news, insider Rajesh Kalathur sold 24,580 shares of the company’s 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 sale, 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 position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this link. Company insiders own 0.29% of the company’s stock.

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.