UPDATE: Deere Posts Upbeat Q1 Profit

Deere & Co

reported a rise in its first-quarter profit. Deere's quarterly profit surged to $681.1 million, or $1.81 per share, versus a year-ago profit of $649.7 million, or $1.65 per share. Its total net sales climbed 3% to $7.65 billion. However, analysts were projecting earnings of $1.52 per share on sales of $6.58 billion. For fiscal year 2014, Deere projects equipment sales to decline around 3%. It also estimates full-year profit of around $3.3 billion. Deere shares gained 2.90% to $90.00 in pre-market trading.