Deere & Company among FORTUNE Top 50 Most Admired Companies

MOLINE, Ill., Feb. 28, 2013 /CNW/ - For the fifth consecutive year, Deere & Company (NYSE: DE) has achieved a ranking among FORTUNE magazine's Top 50 Most Admired Companies. The 2013 listing was announced today.

Deere is ranked 40th on the Most Admired list, which is created after an assessment of more than 1,400 companies around the world and a survey of business leaders worldwide. FORTUNE includes the largest 1,000 U.S. companies as well as non-U.S. companies that are ranked in FORTUNE's global 500 database with annual revenues of more than $10 billion. Topping the list this year are Apple, Google, and Amazon.com.

"Being included among the World's Most Admired Companies is testament to the dedication of Deere & Company employees around the world," said Samuel R. Allen, chairman and CEO at Deere. "Through skillful execution of our growth strategy and operating plans, Deere employees continue to successfully serve our worldwide customers whose work is linked to the land."

The initial ranking of the 1,400 companies comes from assessments of innovation, people management, product quality, value as a long-term investment, fiscal soundness, employee retention, social responsibility, use of assets, and global competitiveness.

This quantitative work eventually ranks companies in 57 lists of various industries. For 2013, Deere ranks second in the Industrial and Farm Equipment category. After the quantitative work is completed, several thousand business leaders are surveyed to determine the Top 50 Most Admired.

Deere & Company is the world's leading manufacturer of agricultural equipment as well as a leading supplier of equipment for construction, forestry and turf care. The company has approximately 67,000 employees worldwide and reported net sales and revenues of $36.157 billion in fiscal 2012.

SOURCE: Deere & Company

Ken Golden, Director, Global Public Relations, [phone]

http://www.deere.com