RD Lewis Holdings Inc. Acquires New Stake in Deere & Company (NYSE:DE)

RD Lewis Holdings Inc. acquired a new stake in shares of Deere & Company (NYSE:DE) in the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the SEC. The fund acquired 2,192 shares of the industrial products company’s stock, valued at approximately $1,021,000. Deere & Company accounts for 1.2% of RD Lewis Holdings Inc.’s portfolio, making the stock its 28th biggest holding.

Several other hedge funds have also made changes to their positions in the company. Pineridge Advisors LLC lifted its stake in shares of Deere & Company by 60.5% during the 4th 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 last quarter. Modus Advisors LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Deere & Company during the 4th quarter worth $32,000. YANKCOM Partnership purchased a new stake in shares of Deere & Company during the 4th quarter worth $34,000. Synergy Asset Management LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Deere & Company during the 4th quarter worth $35,000. Finally, Sierra Ocean LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Deere & Company during the 4th quarter worth $44,000. 68.58% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Deere & Company Stock Performance

NYSE DE opened at $482.59 on Tuesday. The company has a market cap of $130.98 billion, a PE ratio of 21.39, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.14 and a beta of 1.01. The stock’s 50 day simple moving average is $467.88 and its 200-day simple moving average is $434.34. Deere & Company has a 1-year low of $340.20 and a 1-year high of $515.05. 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 (NYSE:DE) last posted its quarterly 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%. As a group, equities research analysts anticipate that Deere & Company will post 19.32 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Deere & Company Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, May 8th. Shareholders of record on Monday, March 31st will be paid a dividend of $1.62 per share. The ex-dividend date is Monday, March 31st. This represents a $6.48 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.34%. Deere & Company’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 28.72%.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other news, insider Rajesh Kalathur sold 24,580 shares of Deere & Company 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 completion of the sale, the insider now directly owns 74,878 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $37,484,675.58. The trade was a 24.71 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. 0.29% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

DE has been the subject of a number of analyst reports. UBS Group upped their price objective on Deere & Company from $404.00 to $462.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research note on Friday, November 22nd. StockNews.com cut Deere & Company from a “hold” rating to a “sell” rating in a research note on Saturday, March 1st. Jefferies Financial Group cut Deere & Company from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating and set a $510.00 price objective for the company. in a research note on Friday, December 6th. Evercore ISI upped their target price 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. Finally, Truist Financial reaffirmed a “buy” rating and set a $546.00 target price (down from $550.00) on shares of Deere & Company in a research report on Friday, February 14th. One analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, thirteen have issued a hold rating and eight have given a buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, Deere & Company presently has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $460.00.

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.