Short Interest in Deere & Company (NYSE:DE) Expands By 5.1%

Deere & Company (NYSE:DE) was the target of a large growth in short interest during the month of January. As of January 31st, there was short interest totalling 5,360,000 shares, a growth of 5.1% from the January 15th total of 5,100,000 shares. Based on an average daily volume of 1,350,000 shares, the days-to-cover ratio is currently 4.0 days. Approximately 2.1% of the shares of the company are sold short.

Deere & Company Trading Up 3.0 %

Shares of NYSE DE traded up $13.95 during midday trading on Monday, hitting $480.17. The company’s stock had a trading volume of 1,919,266 shares, compared to its average volume of 1,347,099. The business’s 50 day moving average is $446.95 and its two-hundred day moving average is $416.83. The firm has a market cap of $130.77 billion, a P/E ratio of 18.76, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.87 and a beta of 0.98. Deere & Company has a 12-month low of $340.20 and a 12-month high of $485.84. The company has a current ratio of 2.09, a quick ratio of 1.90 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.89.

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, beating the consensus estimate of $3.14 by $0.05. Deere & Company had a return on equity of 31.32% and a net margin of 13.73%. As a group, equities research analysts expect that Deere & Company will post 19.38 EPS for the current year.

Deere & Company Increases Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, February 10th. Shareholders of record on Tuesday, December 31st were given a dividend of $1.62 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Tuesday, December 31st. This represents a $6.48 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.35%. This is a boost from Deere & Company’s previous quarterly dividend of $1.47. Deere & Company’s payout ratio is currently 25.31%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of research analysts have issued reports on the company. Truist Financial reiterated a “buy” rating and issued a $546.00 target price (down previously from $550.00) on shares of Deere & Company in a research report on Friday. Morgan Stanley boosted their price target on Deere & Company from $401.00 to $450.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research note on Monday, November 25th. Oppenheimer boosted their price objective on Deere & Company from $477.00 to $507.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a report on Tuesday, January 28th. Barclays upped their price target on Deere & Company from $400.00 to $475.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a report on Friday, November 22nd. Finally, 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. Eleven research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and eight have given a buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock has an average rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $450.12.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Deere & Company

A number of institutional investors have recently modified their holdings of DE. Creative Planning lifted its holdings in Deere & Company by 2.1% in the third quarter. Creative Planning now owns 75,462 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $31,493,000 after acquiring an additional 1,555 shares during the last quarter. Accurate Wealth Management LLC increased its holdings in Deere & Company by 28.0% in the third quarter. Accurate Wealth Management LLC now owns 1,910 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $768,000 after buying an additional 418 shares during the last quarter. Blue Trust Inc. increased its holdings in Deere & Company by 17.2% in the third quarter. Blue Trust Inc. now owns 4,745 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $1,980,000 after buying an additional 696 shares during the last quarter. Spectrum Financial Alliance Ltd LLC increased its holdings in Deere & Company by 23.4% in the third quarter. Spectrum Financial Alliance Ltd LLC now owns 48,206 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $20,118,000 after buying an additional 9,139 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Resonant Capital Advisors LLC acquired a new position in Deere & Company in the third quarter valued at $206,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 68.58% 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.