Deere's fiscal 4Q profit drops 18 percent

Deere & Co., the world's largest maker of farm machinery, reported an 18 percent decline in fiscal fourth-quarter profit Wednesday as costs tied to the closure of a facility in Canada weighed on results.

The Moline-based company said it expected equipment sales to be about flat next year, and up about 7 percent in the first quarter, depending on uncertain global economic conditions.

Deere said it earned $345 million, or 81 cents per share, for the three months ended Oct. 31, compared with $422.1 million, or 94 cents per share, during the same period last year. That included pretax expenses in the latest quarter of about $50 million, or 8 cents per share, to close a facility in Welland, Canada.

Sales and revenue jumped 21 percent to $7.40 billion from $6.14 billion in the fourth quarter of 2007.

Analysts surveyed by Thomson Reuters, on average, predicted earnings per share of 99 cents on revenue of $6.84 billion. Those estimates typically exclude one-time items.

For the full year, Deere said net income shot to a record $2.05 billion, or $4.70 per share, compared with $1.82 billion, or $4 per share, last year.