United Group Insurance

Deere’s 1Q results top Street, but cuts full-year outlook

Ag/Outdoor

February 19th, 2016 by Ric Hanson

MOLINE, Ill. (AP) – Deere’s fiscal first-quarter performance beat Wall Street’s expectations, even as the company continues to deal with weak sales of farm and construction equipment. The agricultural equipment maker lowered its full-year forecast.

Deere has been contending with slumping agricultural machinery sales for some time. Falling commodity prices have made farmers less likely to buy new equipment. Declining oil prices have also affected its construction equipment sales. In November the company announced that it was laying off about 220 workers.

But Deere has been effectively managing its costs. In the first quarter, total costs and expenses declined to $5.17 billion from $5.82 billion.