Secured Retirement Advisors LLC Makes New Investment in Deere & Company (NYSE:DE)

Secured Retirement Advisors LLC acquired a new position in shares of Deere & Company (NYSE:DE) in the fourth quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund acquired 2,582 shares of the industrial products company’s stock, valued at approximately $1,094,000.

A number of other hedge funds also recently made changes to their positions in DE. Strategic Financial Concepts LLC raised its position in Deere & Company by 16.3% during the fourth quarter. Strategic Financial Concepts LLC now owns 783 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $332,000 after purchasing an additional 110 shares in the last quarter. Amarillo National Bank increased its position in shares of Deere & Company by 1.9% during the 4th quarter. Amarillo National Bank now owns 2,114 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $896,000 after purchasing an additional 40 shares during the last quarter. Principal Securities Inc. raised its holdings in shares of Deere & Company by 9.7% during the 4th quarter. Principal Securities Inc. now owns 4,329 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $1,834,000 after buying an additional 381 shares in the last quarter. Everhart Financial Group Inc. raised its holdings in shares of Deere & Company by 18.2% during the 4th quarter. Everhart Financial Group Inc. now owns 1,907 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $808,000 after buying an additional 293 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Montag A & Associates Inc. lifted its position in Deere & Company by 104.3% in the 4th quarter. Montag A & Associates Inc. now owns 9,818 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $4,175,000 after buying an additional 5,012 shares during the last quarter. 68.58% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Deere & Company Stock Performance

Shares of DE stock opened at $480.17 on Friday. The company’s fifty day moving average price is $446.95 and its 200-day moving average price is $416.21. The stock has a market cap of $130.77 billion, a PE ratio of 18.76, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.87 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 has a 12 month low of $340.20 and a 12 month high of $485.84.

Deere & Company (NYSE:DE) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, February 13th. The industrial products company reported $3.19 EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $3.14 by $0.05. Deere & Company had a net margin of 13.73% and a return on equity of 31.32%. On average, equities analysts expect that Deere & Company will post 19.38 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Deere & Company Increases Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, February 10th. Stockholders of record on Tuesday, December 31st were given a $1.62 dividend. This is a boost 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 1.35%. The ex-dividend date was Tuesday, December 31st. Deere & Company’s payout ratio is currently 25.31%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

DE has been the topic of several research reports. Oppenheimer lifted their price target on shares of Deere & Company from $477.00 to $507.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research note on Tuesday, January 28th. Jefferies Financial Group downgraded shares of Deere & Company from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating and set a $510.00 price target for the company. in a research note on Friday, December 6th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. raised their price objective on Deere & Company from $470.00 to $500.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research note on Monday, February 10th. UBS Group increased their target price on Deere & Company from $404.00 to $462.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a report on Friday, November 22nd. Finally, Morgan Stanley lifted their price target on Deere & Company from $401.00 to $450.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research note on Monday, November 25th. Eleven investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and nine have issued a buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock currently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $448.72.

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.