Picton Mahoney Asset Management Sells 18,344 Shares of Deere & Company (NYSE:DE)

Picton Mahoney Asset Management lessened its position in shares of Deere & Company (NYSE:DE) by 45.9% in the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 21,637 shares of the industrial products company’s stock after selling 18,344 shares during the period. Picton Mahoney Asset Management’s holdings in Deere & Company were worth $8,653,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently modified their holdings of the company. Briaud Financial Planning Inc bought a new stake in Deere & Company during the 3rd quarter worth about $25,000. ZRC Wealth Management LLC bought a new stake in Deere & Company during the fourth quarter worth about $28,000. Rakuten Securities Inc. acquired a new position in Deere & Company during the fourth quarter valued at approximately $28,000. Naples Money Management LLC bought a new position in Deere & Company in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $29,000. Finally, Bfsg LLC acquired a new position in shares of Deere & Company during the 4th quarter worth approximately $30,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 68.58% of the company’s stock.

Deere & Company Price Performance

NYSE DE traded down $0.25 during trading on Wednesday, hitting $405.32. 640,327 shares of the company’s stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 1,451,911. The stock’s 50 day moving average price is $393.13 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $384.23. Deere & Company has a fifty-two week low of $345.55 and a fifty-two week high of $450.00. The company has a current ratio of 2.05, a quick ratio of 1.81 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.81. The company has a market cap of $112.82 billion, a PE ratio of 11.80, a P/E/G ratio of 1.51 and a beta of 1.04.

Deere & Company (NYSE:DE) last issued its earnings results on Thursday, February 15th. The industrial products company reported $6.23 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $5.19 by $1.04. The firm had revenue of $10.49 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $10.30 billion. Deere & Company had a net margin of 16.38% and a return on equity of 44.60%. The company’s quarterly revenue was down 8.0% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter last year, the business posted $6.55 earnings per share. Research analysts expect that Deere & Company will post 27.37 EPS for the current year.

Deere & Company Announces Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, May 8th. Shareholders of record on Friday, March 29th will be given a $1.47 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Wednesday, March 27th. This represents a $5.88 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.45%. Deere & Company’s dividend payout ratio is presently 17.12%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several equities research analysts have recently commented on DE shares. Wells Fargo & Company cut their price objective on Deere & Company from $445.00 to $425.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a report on Friday, February 16th. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft dropped their target price on shares of Deere & Company from $425.00 to $401.00 and set a “hold” rating on the stock in a report on Friday, February 16th. Evercore ISI lifted their price target on Deere & Company from $381.00 to $387.00 and gave the stock an “in-line” rating in a report on Tuesday, February 20th. Citigroup cut their price objective on Deere & Company from $450.00 to $435.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a research report on Friday, February 16th. Finally, Stifel Nicolaus decreased their target price on Deere & Company from $435.00 to $425.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a report on Friday, February 16th. Ten investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and nine have given a buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock presently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $433.28.

Deere & Company Profile

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.