CHICAGO, Nov 23 (Reuters) - Deere & Co on Wednesday reported a higher-than-expected quarterly profit on strong sales accelerated by price hikes for its agriculture and construction equipment and forecast higher net income next year.
Shares of the world's largest farm equipment company rose 4.7% in pre-market trade.
The Moline, Illinois-based company's net income rose 75% to $2.25 billion, or $7.44 per share, topping a consensus forecast of $7.11 earnings per share for the quarter ending in October.
Higher grain and soybean prices aided the machinery giant's margins as farmers purchased new equipment or bought parts to upgrade their fleet.
After missing analysts earnings expectations last quarter because of its inability to secure parts from suppliers to assemble large tractors, Deere reassured shareholders that supply chain logjams are starting to abate and gave an optimistic outlook for 2023.
"Deere is looking forward to another strong year in 2023 based on positive farm fundamentals and fleet dynamics as well as an increased investment in infrastructure," CEO John May said in a statement.
The industrial bellwether expects net income between $8.0 billion to $8.5 billion for fiscal year 2023, along with higher sales.
Deere has continued to capitalize on higher commodity prices since the most traded crops hovered around 10-year highs earlier this year. The company has outperformed the broader market with shares trading up 19% year to date.
The farm equipment maker's earnings beat mirrored rival Caterpillar Inc's third-quarter results. Caterpillar also benefited from raising prices on equipment to help offset rising raw material and production costs.
Operating profit for Deere's construction and forestry equipment grew 53% from a year earlier, while precision agriculture products saw the biggest increase, rising 124%.
Total net sales and revenue jumped 37% to $15.54 billion. Equipment net sales rose to $14.35 billion, topping estimates of $13.39 billion, according to Refinitiv.
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