Spirepoint Private Client LLC Purchases Shares of 749 Deere & Company (NYSE:DE)

Spirepoint Private Client LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Deere & Company (NYSE:DE) in the 1st quarter, HoldingsChannel reports. The fund purchased 749 shares of the industrial products company’s stock, valued at approximately $308,000.

Several other hedge funds have also modified their holdings of the company. True Wealth Design LLC raised its position in shares of Deere & Company by 1,180.0% in the 4th quarter. True Wealth Design LLC now owns 64 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $26,000 after purchasing an additional 59 shares during the last quarter. Rakuten Securities Inc. acquired a new position in Deere & Company in the 4th quarter worth approximately $28,000. Naples Money Management LLC acquired a new position in Deere & Company in the 4th quarter worth approximately $29,000. Private Wealth Management Group LLC acquired a new position in Deere & Company in the 4th quarter worth approximately $29,000. Finally, Bfsg LLC acquired a new position in Deere & Company in the 4th quarter worth approximately $30,000. 68.58% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Deere & Company Price Performance

DE traded down $2.58 on Friday, hitting $378.06. 1,152,144 shares of the company’s stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 1,758,635. Deere & Company has a fifty-two week low of $345.93 and a fifty-two week high of $450.00. The company has a current ratio of 2.01, a quick ratio of 1.80 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.81. The firm has a 50-day moving average price of $375.35 and a 200-day moving average price of $384.29. The stock has a market cap of $104.18 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 11.38, a P/E/G ratio of 1.53 and a beta of 0.93.

Deere & Company (NYSE:DE) last announced its earnings results on Thursday, May 16th. The industrial products company reported $8.53 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $7.86 by $0.67. Deere & Company had a net margin of 16.15% and a return on equity of 42.26%. The company had revenue of $13.61 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $13.29 billion. During the same quarter in the previous year, the company posted $9.65 EPS. The firm’s quarterly revenue was down 15.4% on a year-over-year basis. As a group, equities analysts anticipate that Deere & Company will post 25.49 earnings per share for the current year.

Deere & Company Announces Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, August 8th. Shareholders of record on Friday, June 28th will be paid a dividend of $1.47 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, June 28th. This represents a $5.88 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.56%. Deere & Company’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 17.70%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several equities analysts recently weighed in on DE shares. JPMorgan Chase & Co. cut their price target on shares of Deere & Company from $385.00 to $375.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a report on Thursday, July 11th. Oppenheimer reiterated an “outperform” rating and issued a $456.00 price target on shares of Deere & Company in a report on Thursday, May 16th. Stifel Nicolaus raised their price objective on shares of Deere & Company from $425.00 to $450.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Friday, May 17th. DA Davidson dropped their price objective on shares of Deere & Company from $483.00 to $465.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a research note on Monday, May 20th. Finally, Daiwa Capital Markets raised their price objective on shares of Deere & Company from $400.00 to $420.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research note on Wednesday, May 15th. Eleven analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and ten have assigned a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, Deere & Company has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $427.13.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other news, insider Cory J. Reed sold 13,370 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Monday, June 24th. The shares were sold at an average price of $377.63, for a total transaction of $5,048,913.10. Following the transaction, the insider now owns 41,642 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $15,725,268.46. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available at this hyperlink. 0.26% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

About Deere & Company

Deere & Company engages in the manufacture and distribution of various equipment worldwide. The company operates through four segments: Production and Precision Agriculture, Small Agriculture and Turf, Construction and Forestry, and Financial Services. The Production and Precision Agriculture segment provides large and medium tractors, combines, cotton pickers and strippers, sugarcane harvesters and loaders, harvesting front-end equipment, pull-behind scrapers, and tillage and seeding equipment, as well as application equipment, including sprayers and nutrient management, and soil preparation machinery for grain growers.