Convergence Investment Partners LLC Raises Stake in Deere & Company (NYSE:DE)

Convergence Investment Partners LLC increased its stake in shares of Deere & Company (NYSE:DE) by 9.2% during the fourth quarter, HoldingsChannel.com reports. The firm owned 619 shares of the industrial products company’s stock after buying an additional 52 shares during the period. Convergence Investment Partners LLC’s holdings in Deere & Company were worth $262,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently modified their holdings of the company. Pineridge Advisors LLC lifted its holdings in shares of Deere & Company by 60.5% in the fourth quarter. Pineridge Advisors LLC now owns 69 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $29,000 after buying an additional 26 shares in the last quarter. Modus Advisors LLC purchased a new stake in Deere & Company in the 4th quarter worth approximately $32,000. YANKCOM Partnership purchased a new stake in Deere & Company in the 4th quarter worth approximately $34,000. Synergy Asset Management LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Deere & Company in the fourth quarter worth $35,000. Finally, Sierra Ocean LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Deere & Company in the fourth quarter worth $44,000. 68.58% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Deere & Company Stock Up 1.6 %

DE opened at $509.54 on Thursday. The company has a market cap of $138.77 billion, a P/E ratio of 22.59, a P/E/G ratio of 2.96 and a beta of 0.98. The business’s 50-day moving average price is $449.95 and its 200-day moving average price is $419.37. The company has a current ratio of 2.22, a quick ratio of 1.98 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.94. Deere & Company has a 12 month low of $340.20 and a 12 month high of $515.05.

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 return on equity of 27.31% and a net margin of 12.94%. On average, equities analysts expect that Deere & Company will post 19.35 EPS for the current year.

Deere & Company Increases Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, February 10th. Investors of record on Tuesday, December 31st were paid a $1.62 dividend. This represents a $6.48 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.27%. This is an increase from Deere & Company’s previous quarterly dividend of $1.47. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Tuesday, December 31st. Deere & Company’s payout ratio is presently 28.72%.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, insider Rajesh Kalathur sold 24,580 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, February 18th. The stock was sold at an average price of $500.61, for a total transaction of $12,304,993.80. Following the transaction, the insider now owns 74,878 shares in the company, valued at $37,484,675.58. The trade was a 24.71 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this link. 0.29% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of equities research analysts recently issued reports on the company. Morgan Stanley increased their price objective on Deere & Company from $401.00 to $450.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research report on Monday, November 25th. Barclays raised their price target on Deere & Company from $400.00 to $475.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a report on Friday, November 22nd. Citigroup raised their target price on shares of Deere & Company from $430.00 to $480.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research note on Friday, February 14th. UBS Group raised their target price on shares of Deere & Company from $404.00 to $462.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research note on Friday, November 22nd. Finally, Jefferies Financial Group cut shares of Deere & Company from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating and set a $510.00 price objective on the stock. in a research report on Friday, December 6th. Eleven investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and eight have issued a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $454.65.

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.