Deere & Company (NYSE:DE) Shares Sold by Birmingham Capital Management Co. Inc. AL

Birmingham Capital Management Co. Inc. AL lessened its stake in Deere & Company (NYSE:DE) by 1.9% during the second quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 42,833 shares of the industrial products company’s stock after selling 840 shares during the quarter. Deere & Company makes up about 7.3% of Birmingham Capital Management Co. Inc. AL’s holdings, making the stock its largest position. Birmingham Capital Management Co. Inc. AL’s holdings in Deere & Company were worth $17,356,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission.

Other large investors also recently modified their holdings of the company. Bank Julius Baer & Co. Ltd Zurich lifted its holdings in Deere & Company by 98,818.3% during the second quarter. Bank Julius Baer & Co. Ltd Zurich now owns 15,922,881 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $6,451,792,000 after acquiring an additional 15,906,784 shares during the period. Providence Capital Advisors LLC raised its stake in shares of Deere & Company by 41,880.9% in the first quarter. Providence Capital Advisors LLC now owns 5,703,524 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $13,814,000 after buying an additional 5,689,938 shares during the period. Moneta Group Investment Advisors LLC raised its stake in shares of Deere & Company by 104,373.8% in the fourth quarter. Moneta Group Investment Advisors LLC now owns 3,219,883 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $1,380,557,000 after buying an additional 3,216,801 shares during the period. Norges Bank bought a new stake in shares of Deere & Company in the fourth quarter valued at $1,326,177,000. Finally, Altshuler Shaham Ltd grew its position in shares of Deere & Company by 193.0% in the second quarter. Altshuler Shaham Ltd now owns 936,581 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $379,493,000 after purchasing an additional 616,893 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors own 66.27% of the company’s stock.

Deere & Company Stock Down 2.8 %

DE stock traded down $11.48 during midday trading on Tuesday, hitting $399.36. The company’s stock had a trading volume of 1,201,668 shares, compared to its average volume of 1,598,011. The company has a market cap of $115.02 billion, a PE ratio of 12.14, a P/E/G ratio of 0.93 and a beta of 1.07. Deere & Company has a 12 month low of $328.62 and a 12 month high of $450.00. The company has a current ratio of 1.98, a quick ratio of 1.74 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.65. The firm’s 50-day moving average is $417.81 and its 200-day moving average is $398.87.

Deere & Company (NYSE:DE) last released its quarterly earnings results on Friday, August 18th. The industrial products company reported $10.20 earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $8.22 by $1.98. The firm had revenue of $14.28 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $14.14 billion. Deere & Company had a return on equity of 46.15% and a net margin of 16.36%. The company’s revenue was up 9.9% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the prior year, the firm earned $6.16 EPS. On average, equities research analysts forecast that Deere & Company will post 33.9 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Deere & Company Increases Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, November 8th. Investors of record on Friday, September 29th will be issued a $1.35 dividend. This is a boost from Deere & Company’s previous quarterly dividend of $1.25. This represents a $5.40 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.35%. The ex-dividend date is Thursday, September 28th. Deere & Company’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 14.78%.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, CEO John C. May II sold 52,967 shares of Deere & Company stock in a transaction dated Thursday, June 22nd. The stock was sold at an average price of $416.02, for a total value of $22,035,331.34. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief executive officer now owns 109,126 shares in the company, valued at $45,398,598.52. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available at this hyperlink. In other Deere & Company news, insider Cory J. Reed sold 4,680 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, July 25th. The shares were sold at an average price of $449.75, for a total value of $2,104,830.00. Following the completion of the sale, the insider now owns 36,563 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $16,444,209.25. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Also, CEO John C. May II sold 52,967 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Thursday, June 22nd. The stock was sold at an average price of $416.02, for a total transaction of $22,035,331.34. Following the completion of the sale, the chief executive officer now directly owns 109,126 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $45,398,598.52. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. 0.26% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

DE has been the subject of several recent analyst reports. HSBC initiated coverage on Deere & Company in a research report on Friday. They set a “buy” rating and a $486.00 target price for the company. Robert W. Baird reduced their target price on Deere & Company from $512.00 to $445.00 in a research report on Monday, May 22nd. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft boosted their target price on Deere & Company from $398.00 to $407.00 and gave the stock a “hold” rating in a research report on Monday, August 21st. UBS Group lifted their price target on Deere & Company from $383.00 to $408.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research note on Monday, August 21st. Finally, Citigroup lifted their price target on Deere & Company from $460.00 to $475.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Tuesday, July 18th. Six research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and thirteen have issued a buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $459.90.

Deere & Company Company Profile

Deere & Company manufactures and distributes 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 mid-size tractors, combines, cotton pickers and strippers, sugarcane harvesters, harvesting front-end equipment, sugarcane loaders, 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.