Castle Wealth Management LLC Cuts Position in Deere & Company (NYSE:DE)

Castle Wealth Management LLC trimmed its position in Deere & Company (NYSE:DE) by 2.6% during the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm owned 1,272 shares of the industrial products company’s stock after selling 34 shares during the quarter. Castle Wealth Management LLC’s holdings in Deere & Company were worth $511,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other large investors also recently modified their holdings of DE. Briaud Financial Planning Inc purchased a new stake in shares of Deere & Company during the 3rd quarter valued at about $25,000. Retirement Group LLC raised its holdings in shares of Deere & Company by 264.7% during the 2nd quarter. Retirement Group LLC now owns 62 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $25,000 after buying an additional 45 shares during the period. ZRC Wealth Management LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Deere & Company during the 4th quarter valued at about $28,000. Rakuten Securities Inc. purchased a new stake in shares of Deere & Company during the 4th quarter valued at about $28,000. Finally, Worth Asset Management LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Deere & Company during the 1st quarter valued at about $28,000. 68.58% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Deere & Company Stock Performance

Shares of NYSE DE traded down $0.21 during mid-day trading on Friday, hitting $400.39. The company had a trading volume of 1,125,178 shares, compared to its average volume of 1,496,266. The stock has a market cap of $111.45 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 11.66, a PEG ratio of 1.49 and a beta of 1.04. Deere & Company has a 12 month low of $345.55 and a 12 month high of $450.00. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.81, a current ratio of 2.05 and a quick ratio of 1.81. The firm’s 50 day simple moving average is $385.86 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $382.97.

Deere & Company (NYSE:DE) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, February 15th. The industrial products company reported $6.23 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $5.19 by $1.04. The business had revenue of $10.49 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $10.30 billion. Deere & Company had a return on equity of 44.60% and a net margin of 16.38%. The business’s revenue was down 8.0% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter last year, the business posted $6.55 EPS. As a group, equities research analysts forecast that Deere & Company will post 27.39 earnings per share for the current year.

Deere & Company Announces Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, May 8th. Investors of record on Friday, March 29th will be issued a $1.47 dividend. This represents a $5.88 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.47%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Wednesday, March 27th. Deere & Company’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 17.12%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of brokerages have weighed in on DE. Morgan Stanley began coverage on Deere & Company in a research note on Monday, January 8th. They set an “overweight” rating and a $430.00 price objective for the company. JPMorgan Chase & Co. raised their price objective on Deere & Company from $415.00 to $425.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research note on Friday, April 12th. Melius lowered Deere & Company from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Monday, January 8th. Melius Research restated a “hold” rating on shares of Deere & Company in a research note on Monday, January 8th. Finally, Stifel Nicolaus lowered their price objective on Deere & Company from $435.00 to $425.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a research note on Friday, February 16th. Ten research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and nine have issued a buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company currently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $433.28.

Deere & Company 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.