Ruffer LLP Acquires 4,200 Shares of Deere & Company (NYSE:DE)

Ruffer LLP grew its holdings in shares of Deere & Company (NYSE:DE) by 2.3% during the fourth quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the SEC. The firm owned 186,051 shares of the industrial products company’s stock after purchasing an additional 4,200 shares during the period. Deere & Company accounts for 2.8% of Ruffer LLP’s portfolio, making the stock its 9th biggest position. Ruffer LLP owned approximately 0.07% of Deere & Company worth $78,829,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently modified their holdings of the company. Pineridge Advisors LLC increased its stake in Deere & Company by 60.5% during the 4th quarter. Pineridge Advisors LLC now owns 69 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $29,000 after buying an additional 26 shares during the period. Modus Advisors LLC bought a new position in shares of Deere & Company during the 4th quarter valued at about $32,000. YANKCOM Partnership bought a new position in shares of Deere & Company during the 4th quarter valued at about $34,000. Synergy Asset Management LLC bought a new position in shares of Deere & Company during the 4th quarter valued at about $35,000. Finally, Sierra Ocean LLC bought a new position in shares of Deere & Company during the 4th quarter valued at about $44,000. 68.58% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Insider Activity at Deere & Company

In other Deere & Company news, insider Rajesh Kalathur sold 24,580 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, February 18th. The stock was 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 owns 74,878 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $37,484,675.58. This represents a 24.71 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available through this link. 0.29% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

DE has been the subject of several recent analyst reports. Robert W. Baird reiterated a “neutral” rating and issued a $501.00 target price on shares of Deere & Company in a report on Monday, March 3rd. Evercore ISI raised their price objective on shares of Deere & Company from $437.00 to $455.00 and gave the company an “in-line” rating in a research report on Wednesday, February 19th. Truist Financial reissued a “buy” rating and issued a $546.00 price target (down previously from $550.00) on shares of Deere & Company in a research report on Friday, February 14th. Morgan Stanley lifted their price target on shares of Deere & Company from $401.00 to $450.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research report on Monday, November 25th. Finally, UBS Group raised their price objective on shares of Deere & Company from $404.00 to $462.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research note on Friday, November 22nd. One research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, thirteen have issued a hold rating and eight 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 price target of $457.22.

Deere & Company Stock Performance

Deere & Company stock opened at $499.73 on Friday. The stock has a 50-day simple moving average of $461.21 and a 200 day simple moving average of $429.83. The company has a quick ratio of 1.98, a current ratio of 2.22 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.94. Deere & Company has a 12-month low of $340.20 and a 12-month high of $515.05. The stock has a market capitalization of $135.63 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 22.15, a P/E/G ratio of 2.14 and a beta of 1.01.

Deere & Company (NYSE:DE) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, February 13th. The industrial products company reported $3.19 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $3.14 by $0.05. Deere & Company had a return on equity of 27.31% and a net margin of 12.94%. On average, research analysts anticipate that Deere & Company will post 19.32 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Deere & Company Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, May 8th. Investors of record on Monday, March 31st will be given a $1.62 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Monday, March 31st. This represents a $6.48 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.30%. Deere & Company’s dividend payout ratio is presently 28.72%.

Deere & Company 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.