Net sales have increased 4% for the fourth quarter and 5% for the full year.
Net Income was $ 3.253 Billion for Year
Deere & Company reported net income of $ 722 million for the fourth quarter ended November 3, 2019, or $ 2.27 per share, compared with net income of $ 785 million, or $ 2.42 per share, for the quarter ended October 28, 2018. For fiscal 2019, net income attributable to Deere & Company was $ 3.253 billion, or $ 10.15 per share, compared with $ 2.368 billion, or $ 7.24 per share, in 2018.
Worldwide net sales and revenues increased 5 percent in both the fourth quarter and full year of 2019 to $ 9.896 billion and $ 39.258 billion, for the respective periods. Net sales of the equipment operations were $ 8.703 billion for the quarter and $ 34.886 billion for the year, compared with respective totals of $ 8.343 billion and $ 33.351 billion in 2018.
John Deere's performance reflected uncertainties in the agricultural sector. Trade tensions coupled with a year of difficult growing and harvesting conditions have caused many farmers to become cautious about making major investments in new equipment. At the same time, general economic conditions have remained favourable. This has supported demand for smaller equipment and led to solid results for Deere's construction and forestry business, which had a record year for sales and operating profit."
Construction & Forestry sales were higher for the quarter and year primarily due to higher shipment volumes and price realization, partially offset by the unfavourable effects of currency translation. Excluding the Wirtgen component of the business, the decline in Construction & Forestry results for the quarter was primarily due to higher production costs, increased selling, administrative, and general expenses, and a less-favourable sales mix, partially offset by higher shipment volumes and price realization. Full-year 2019 results, excluding Wirtgen, moved higher as a result of price realization and higher shipment volumes, partially offset by higher production costs and a less-favourable sales mix.
Deere’s worldwide sales of construction and forestry equipment are anticipated to be down 10 to 15 percent for 2020, with foreign-currency rates having an unfavourable translation effect of 1 percent. The outlook reflects slowing construction activity as well as the company’s efforts to manage dealer inventory levels. In forestry, global industry sales are expected to be in line with the previous year. Source