Deere income up, but well short of expectations

(AP) NEW YORK - Deere (DE) says its third-quarter net income rose 11 percent but fell well short of expectations, hit hard by a weakening global economy and prolonged drought in the U.S.

The Moline, Ill., company, the world's largest producer of agricultural equipment, said Wednesday it earned $788 million, or $1.98 per share for the quarter ended July 31, compared with $712.3 million, or $1.69 per share for the same period last year.

Revenue rose 15 percent to $9.59 billion.

But Wall Street was looking for earnings of $2.31 per share on revenue of $9.61 billion, and Deere's stock tumbled 5 percent.

Besides international weakness and shrinking crop yields, new product launches also hurt efficiency.

It projects net income of $3.1 billion for the year, compared with analyst expectations of about $3.3 billion.