Deere & Company (NYSE:DE) Shares Gap Up After Better-Than-Expected Earnings

Deere & Company (NYSE:DE) gapped up before the market opened on Thursday following a better than expected earnings announcement. The stock had previously closed at $497.50, but opened at $517.35. Deere & Company shares last traded at $528.76, with a volume of 499,712 shares changing hands.

The industrial products company reported $6.64 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $5.72 by $0.92. Deere & Company had a net margin of 12.94% and a return on equity of 27.31%. The business had revenue of $11.17 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $10.80 billion.

Deere & Company Dividend Announcement

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, May 8th. Stockholders of record on Monday, March 31st were issued a $1.62 dividend. This represents a $6.48 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.22%. The ex-dividend date was Monday, March 31st. Deere & Company’s dividend payout ratio is currently 28.72%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of analysts recently commented on DE shares. Argus set a $510.00 target price on shares of Deere & Company in a research note on Friday, March 7th. StockNews.com upgraded shares of Deere & Company from a “sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Tuesday. UBS Group lowered their target price on shares of Deere & Company from $462.00 to $440.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a research note on Monday, April 7th. Oppenheimer lifted their target price on shares of Deere & Company from $513.00 to $555.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research note on Friday. Finally, Barclays lifted their target price on shares of Deere & Company from $475.00 to $530.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research note on Friday. Fourteen investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and seven have given a buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the company currently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $495.00.

Insider Activity

In other news, insider Rajesh Kalathur sold 24,580 shares of Deere & Company stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, February 18th. The shares were sold at an average price of $500.61, for a total transaction of $12,304,993.80. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider now directly owns 74,878 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $37,484,675.58. The trade was a 24.71% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through the SEC website. Insiders own 0.29% of the company’s stock.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Deere & Company

Several institutional investors have recently made changes to their positions in DE. Chicago Partners Investment Group LLC grew its stake in Deere & Company by 1.2% in the 1st quarter. Chicago Partners Investment Group LLC now owns 1,803 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $852,000 after acquiring an additional 21 shares during the period. Tyler Stone Wealth Management grew its stake in Deere & Company by 1.7% in the 1st quarter. Tyler Stone Wealth Management now owns 1,230 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $577,000 after acquiring an additional 21 shares during the period. Robertson Stephens Wealth Management LLC grew its stake in Deere & Company by 2.2% in the 4th quarter. Robertson Stephens Wealth Management LLC now owns 1,002 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $426,000 after acquiring an additional 22 shares during the period. Sunbelt Securities Inc. grew its stake in Deere & Company by 2.4% in the 1st quarter. Sunbelt Securities Inc. now owns 925 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $434,000 after acquiring an additional 22 shares during the period. Finally, Hayek Kallen Investment Management grew its stake in Deere & Company by 1.7% in the 1st quarter. Hayek Kallen Investment Management now owns 1,299 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $610,000 after acquiring an additional 22 shares during the period. 68.58% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Deere & Company Stock Up 3.0%

The business’s 50 day moving average is $468.29 and its 200-day moving average is $454.33. The stock has a market cap of $144.34 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 23.57, a PEG ratio of 2.14 and a beta of 1.08. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.94, a quick ratio of 1.98 and a current ratio of 2.22.

About Deere & Company

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.