NEW YORK (AP) — Weak farm and construction equipment sales cut into Deere & Co.'s profit during its fiscal fourth-quarter, but the results still topped expectations.
The agricultural and construction equipment maker's profit fell 19 percent to $285.3 million, or 90 cents per share.
Overall revenue, including financial services, fell 3 percent to $6.52 billion. Equipment sales, which are a key measure of the company's financial health, fell 5 percent to $5.65 billion.
Still, the results beat Wall Street expectations. The average estimate of 11 analysts surveyed by Zacks Investment Research was for earnings of 36 cents per share, while five analysts expected equipment sales of $5.35 billion.
Low commodity prices have made it more difficult for farmers to buy new equipment, cutting into sales. The Moline, Illinois-based company is also feeling pressure from a construction slowdown cutting into equipment sales.
For the year, its profit fell 21 percent to $1.52 billion, or $4.81 per share. Equipment sales fell 7.7 percent to $23.39 billion. Overall revenue came in at $24.1 billion.
Looking ahead, Deere expects sales to continue lagging because of the weak market for equipment.
Deere shares rose $10.18, or 11 percent, to $102.19 in premarket trading Wednesday. The stock has increased 23 percent in the last 12 months.
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Elements of this story were generated by Automated Insights (http://automatedinsights.com/ap) using data from Zacks Investment Research. Access a Zacks stock report on DE at https://www.zacks.com/ap/DE