Franklin Resources Inc. Has $214.08 Million Stock Holdings in Deere & Company (NYSE:DE)

Franklin Resources Inc. trimmed its stake in shares of Deere & Company (NYSE:DE) by 1.7% during the fourth quarter, Holdings Channel reports. The firm owned 505,252 shares of the industrial products company’s stock after selling 8,967 shares during the period. Franklin Resources Inc.’s holdings in Deere & Company were worth $214,075,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other large investors also recently modified their holdings of DE. Norges Bank acquired a new position in Deere & Company in the fourth quarter valued at about $1,244,094,000. Wellington Management Group LLP raised its stake in shares of Deere & Company by 32.0% in the third quarter. Wellington Management Group LLP now owns 7,352,465 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $3,068,404,000 after acquiring an additional 1,782,984 shares during the last quarter. Raymond James Financial Inc. acquired a new position in shares of Deere & Company in the 4th quarter worth approximately $296,232,000. Proficio Capital Partners LLC grew its position in Deere & Company by 52,200.3% during the 4th quarter. Proficio Capital Partners LLC now owns 530,848 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $224,920,000 after acquiring an additional 529,833 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Strategic Wealth Investment Group LLC bought a new stake in Deere & Company during the 4th quarter worth approximately $148,359,000. 68.58% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Deere & Company Stock Performance

Shares of DE stock opened at $478.42 on Wednesday. The company has a market capitalization of $129.85 billion, a P/E ratio of 21.21, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.14 and a beta of 1.01. Deere & Company has a 52 week low of $340.20 and a 52 week high of $515.05. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.94, a quick ratio of 1.98 and a current ratio of 2.22. The company’s 50 day moving average price is $477.87 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $441.29.

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

Deere & Company Announces Dividend

The firm also recently declared 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 1.35%. Deere & Company’s dividend payout ratio is currently 28.72%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of research firms have commented on DE. Citigroup boosted their price objective on Deere & Company from $430.00 to $480.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research note on Friday, February 14th. Argus set a $510.00 price objective on shares of Deere & Company in a report on Friday, March 7th. Evercore ISI boosted their target price on shares of Deere & Company from $437.00 to $455.00 and gave the stock an “in-line” rating in a research note on Wednesday, February 19th. Oppenheimer upped their target price on shares of Deere & Company from $477.00 to $507.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research report on Tuesday, January 28th. Finally, Jefferies Financial Group lowered shares of Deere & Company from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating and set a $510.00 price target for the company. in a report on Friday, December 6th. Fourteen analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and eight have given a buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, Deere & Company has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $460.00.

Insider Activity

In other news, insider Rajesh Kalathur sold 24,580 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, February 18th. The stock was sold at an average price of $500.61, for a total value of $12,304,993.80. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider now owns 74,878 shares in the company, valued at $37,484,675.58. This trade represents a 24.71 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at the SEC website. 0.29% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

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.