Marietta Wealth Management LLC Boosts Stake in Deere & Company (NYSE:DE)

Marietta Wealth Management LLC raised its holdings in shares of Deere & Company (NYSE:DE) by 0.6% during the fourth quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund owned 13,919 shares of the industrial products company’s stock after acquiring an additional 79 shares during the period. Marietta Wealth Management LLC’s holdings in Deere & Company were worth $5,897,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other large investors also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the business. Everence Capital Management Inc. lifted its holdings in Deere & Company by 148.3% in the fourth quarter. Everence Capital Management Inc. now owns 12,223 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $5,179,000 after buying an additional 7,300 shares during the period. Stockbridge Partners LLC grew its stake in Deere & Company by 157.5% in the third quarter. Stockbridge Partners LLC now owns 884,237 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $369,019,000 after purchasing an additional 540,874 shares during the period. Toronto Dominion Bank raised its holdings in Deere & Company by 1.5% in the third quarter. Toronto Dominion Bank now owns 86,952 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $36,288,000 after purchasing an additional 1,291 shares in the last quarter. Chase Investment Counsel Corp raised its holdings in Deere & Company by 53.8% in the third quarter. Chase Investment Counsel Corp now owns 4,000 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $1,669,000 after purchasing an additional 1,400 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Czech National Bank boosted its stake in Deere & Company by 5.7% during the fourth quarter. Czech National Bank now owns 55,170 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $23,376,000 after acquiring an additional 2,964 shares in the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 68.58% of the company’s stock.

Deere & Company Stock Performance

Shares of DE opened at $476.29 on Friday. The company’s 50 day simple moving average is $444.68 and its 200-day simple moving average is $409.82. Deere & Company has a 12-month low of $340.20 and a 12-month high of $485.84. The firm has a market cap of $129.72 billion, a PE ratio of 18.61, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.95 and a beta of 0.98. 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 issued its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, November 21st. The industrial products company reported $4.55 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $3.89 by $0.66. The firm had revenue of $9.28 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $9.20 billion. Deere & Company had a return on equity of 31.32% and a net margin of 13.73%. The company’s revenue for the quarter was down 32.8% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period last year, the company earned $8.26 earnings per share. As a group, equities analysts predict 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 will be paid on Monday, February 10th. Stockholders of record on Tuesday, December 31st will be issued a dividend of $1.62 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Tuesday, December 31st. This is an increase from Deere & Company’s previous quarterly dividend of $1.47. This represents a $6.48 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.36%. Deere & Company’s payout ratio is 25.31%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several research firms have recently weighed in on DE. Citigroup lowered their price target on Deere & Company from $470.00 to $430.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a report on Tuesday, January 14th. Truist Financial lifted their target price on Deere & Company from $538.00 to $550.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Thursday, December 19th. Barclays increased their price target on Deere & Company from $400.00 to $475.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research note on Friday, November 22nd. UBS Group increased their price target on shares of Deere & Company from $404.00 to $462.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a report on Friday, November 22nd. Finally, Jefferies Financial Group lowered shares of Deere & Company from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating and set a $510.00 target price for the company. in a report on Friday, December 6th. Eleven research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and nine have assigned a buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, the stock presently has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $444.50.

Deere & 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.