Ruffer LLP Boosts Stock Position in Deere & Company (NYSE:DE)

Ruffer LLP lifted its position in shares of Deere & Company (NYSE:DE) by 2.3% in the fourth quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the SEC. The institutional investor owned 186,051 shares of the industrial products company’s stock after buying an additional 4,200 shares during the quarter. Deere & Company comprises 2.8% of Ruffer LLP’s holdings, making the stock its 9th biggest position. Ruffer LLP’s holdings in Deere & Company were worth $78,829,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors also recently modified their holdings of the company. Argentarii LLC bought a new position in shares of Deere & Company in the fourth quarter worth $232,000. OFI Invest Asset Management bought a new stake in shares of Deere & Company during the fourth quarter worth about $2,300,000. Personal CFO Solutions LLC lifted its stake in shares of Deere & Company by 10.1% in the fourth quarter. Personal CFO Solutions LLC now owns 1,156 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $490,000 after acquiring an additional 106 shares during the period. Atlantic Union Bankshares Corp lifted its stake in shares of Deere & Company by 0.7% in the fourth quarter. Atlantic Union Bankshares Corp now owns 11,351 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $4,809,000 after acquiring an additional 77 shares during the period. Finally, Dorsey & Whitney Trust CO LLC lifted its stake in Deere & Company by 12.5% in the fourth quarter. Dorsey & Whitney Trust CO LLC now owns 4,274 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $1,811,000 after buying an additional 474 shares during the period. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 68.58% of the company’s stock.

Deere & Company Price Performance

DE opened at $499.73 on Friday. The stock’s 50 day simple moving average is $461.21 and its 200 day simple moving average is $429.83. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.94, a current ratio of 2.22 and a quick ratio of 1.98. Deere & Company has a 1 year low of $340.20 and a 1 year high of $515.05. The firm has a market cap of $135.63 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 22.15, a PEG ratio of 2.14 and a beta of 1.01.

Deere & Company (NYSE:DE) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, February 13th. The industrial products company reported $3.19 earnings per share for the quarter, topping 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%. As a group, analysts predict that Deere & Company will post 19.32 earnings per share for the current year.

Deere & Company Announces Dividend

The business 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. This represents a $6.48 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.30%. The ex-dividend date is Monday, March 31st. Deere & Company’s dividend payout ratio is presently 28.72%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several brokerages have issued reports on DE. Oppenheimer boosted their price target on Deere & Company from $477.00 to $507.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research note on Tuesday, January 28th. Jefferies Financial Group downgraded Deere & Company from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating and set a $510.00 price target for the company. in a report on Friday, December 6th. UBS Group upped their price objective on Deere & Company from $404.00 to $462.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research note on Friday, November 22nd. JPMorgan Chase & Co. upped their price target on Deere & Company from $470.00 to $500.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research report on Monday, February 10th. Finally, Evercore ISI upped their price target on Deere & Company from $437.00 to $455.00 and gave the company an “in-line” rating in a research report on Wednesday, February 19th. 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. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company currently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $457.22.

Insider Transactions at Deere & Company

In other news, insider Rajesh Kalathur sold 24,580 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction 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 transaction, the insider now directly owns 74,878 shares in the company, valued at $37,484,675.58. This trade represents a 24.71 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available at this link. Insiders own 0.29% of the company’s stock.

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.