Hartford Funds Management Co LLC Acquires 420 Shares of Deere & Company (NYSE:DE)

Hartford Funds Management Co LLC raised its holdings in Deere & Company (NYSE:DE) by 30.4% in the fourth quarter, Holdings Channel reports. The firm owned 1,802 shares of the industrial products company’s stock after purchasing an additional 420 shares during the period. Hartford Funds Management Co LLC’s holdings in Deere & Company were worth $763,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC).

A number of other institutional investors have also recently bought and sold shares of the business. Pineridge Advisors LLC grew its stake in shares of Deere & Company by 60.5% during the 4th quarter. Pineridge Advisors LLC now owns 69 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $29,000 after acquiring an additional 26 shares during the period. Modus Advisors LLC bought a new position in shares of Deere & Company during the 4th quarter worth $32,000. YANKCOM Partnership bought a new position in shares of Deere & Company during the 4th quarter worth $34,000. Synergy Asset Management LLC bought a new position in shares of Deere & Company during the 4th quarter worth $35,000. Finally, Sierra Ocean LLC bought a new position in shares of Deere & Company during the 4th quarter worth $44,000. Institutional investors own 68.58% of the company’s stock.

Deere & Company Stock Performance

NYSE:DE opened at $483.19 on Friday. The business has a 50 day moving average of $459.82 and a 200 day moving average of $428.56. The company has a market capitalization of $131.60 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 21.42, a PEG ratio of 2.14 and a beta of 0.98. Deere & Company has a 1-year low of $340.20 and a 1-year high of $515.05. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.94, a current ratio of 2.22 and a quick ratio of 1.98.

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, beating 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, sell-side analysts predict that Deere & Company will post 19.32 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Deere & Company Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, May 8th. Stockholders of record on Monday, March 31st will be paid a dividend of $1.62 per share. The ex-dividend date is Monday, March 31st. This represents a $6.48 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.34%. Deere & Company’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 28.72%.

Insider Activity

In other news, insider Rajesh Kalathur sold 24,580 shares of the business’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 transaction, the insider now directly owns 74,878 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $37,484,675.58. The trade was a 24.71 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Insiders own 0.29% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several research analysts have recently weighed in on DE shares. Evercore ISI increased their price target on Deere & Company from $437.00 to $455.00 and gave the stock an “in-line” rating in a research note on Wednesday, February 19th. Barclays raised their target price on Deere & Company from $400.00 to $475.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research note on Friday, November 22nd. Jefferies Financial Group downgraded Deere & Company from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating and set a $510.00 target price for the company. in a research note on Friday, December 6th. Oppenheimer raised their target price on Deere & Company from $477.00 to $507.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research note on Tuesday, January 28th. Finally, StockNews.com downgraded Deere & Company from a “hold” rating to a “sell” rating in a research note on Saturday, March 1st. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, thirteen have assigned a hold rating and eight have issued a buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $457.22.

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.