Deere & Company (NYSE:DE) Given New $450.00 Price Target at Citigroup

Deere & Company (NYSE:DE) had its price objective lowered by Citigroup from $480.00 to $450.00 in a research report sent to investors on Tuesday morning,Benzinga reports. Citigroup currently has a neutral rating on the industrial products company’s stock.

Other equities research analysts have also recently issued reports about the company. StockNews.com cut Deere & Company from a “hold” rating to a “sell” rating in a report on Sunday. Argus set a $510.00 price objective on shares of Deere & Company in a research note on Friday, March 7th. UBS Group cut their target price on shares of Deere & Company from $462.00 to $440.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a research report on Monday. Robert W. Baird reiterated a “neutral” rating and set a $501.00 price objective on shares of Deere & Company in a research note on Monday, March 3rd. Finally, Baird R W downgraded shares of Deere & Company from a “strong-buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Monday, March 3rd. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, thirteen have issued a hold rating and eight have assigned a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat.com, Deere & Company presently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $457.26.

Deere & Company Trading Down 2.7 %

DE stock opened at $411.80 on Tuesday. Deere & Company has a 12 month low of $340.20 and a 12 month high of $515.05. The firm’s 50-day moving average is $472.60 and its 200 day moving average is $442.30. The company has a market capitalization of $111.77 billion, a PE ratio of 18.25, a P/E/G ratio of 2.14 and a beta of 1.00. 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 issued its 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, research analysts anticipate that Deere & Company will post 19.32 EPS for the current year.

Deere & Company Dividend Announcement

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, May 8th. Stockholders 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 dividend yield of 1.57%. Deere & Company’s payout ratio is currently 28.72%.

Insider Activity

In other news, insider Rajesh Kalathur sold 24,580 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated 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 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 ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available through the SEC website. Corporate insiders own 0.29% of the company’s stock.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Deere & Company

Several hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently bought and sold shares of DE. Pineridge Advisors LLC boosted its holdings in shares of Deere & Company by 60.5% in the 4th quarter. Pineridge Advisors LLC now owns 69 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $29,000 after acquiring an additional 26 shares during the last quarter. Modus Advisors LLC purchased a new stake in Deere & Company in the fourth quarter valued at $32,000. YANKCOM Partnership acquired a new stake in Deere & Company during the 4th quarter worth about $34,000. Orion Capital Management LLC purchased a new position in shares of Deere & Company during the 4th quarter valued at about $34,000. Finally, Synergy Asset Management LLC acquired a new position in shares of Deere & Company in the 4th quarter valued at about $35,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds 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.