UPDATE
The largest employer in Dubuque County this morning highlighted strong first-quarter results and presented a positive outlook for the remainder of its fiscal year.
Deere & Co. reported first-quarter sales of nearly $2.47 billion in its construction and forestry division, which includes John Deere Dubuque Works. That represented a 21% increase compared to the same quarter last fiscal year.
Operating profit for the fiscal year’s opening quarter, which ended Jan. 31, was $268 million. That represents a 188% increase compared with the same, three-month stretch in the prior fiscal year.
Top company officials reflected on the results in a conference call this morning.
“Our (construction and forestry) business has benefited from a very strong housing market, a modest recovery in the oil and gas sector and the industry’s proactive inventory management,” said Ryan Campbell, senior vice president and chief financial officer for Deere & Co.
Deere officials also presented a positive outlook for the fiscal year as a whole, projecting sales of $10.5 billion to $11 billion in the construction and forestry division.
Manager of Investor Communications Brent Norwood provided a more in-depth analysis of how various parts of that division should perform.
“North American construction equipment industry sales are now forecast to be up about 5%, while sales of compact construction equipment are expected to be up about 10% …. in forestry, we now expect the industry to be up between 5 to 10%,” he said.
This story will be updated.
ORIGINAL
MOLINE, Ill. — Deere & Co. today reported fiscal first-quarter net income of $1.22 billion.
The company said it had net income of $3.87 per share.
The results topped Wall Street expectations. The average estimate of 10 analysts surveyed by Zacks Investment Research was for earnings of $2.15 per share.
The agricultural equipment manufacturer posted revenue of $9.11 billion in the period. Its adjusted revenue was $8.05 billion, also exceeding Street forecasts. Six analysts surveyed by Zacks expected $7.12 billion.
Deere shares have risen 12% since the beginning of the year, while the Standard & Poor’s 500 index has climbed 4%. The stock has climbed 81% in the past 12 months.