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16 SEPTEMBER 2014 OUTDOOR POWER EQUIPMENT www.outdoorpowerequipment.com Financial nEWS Deere & Company announced Aug. 13 that net income attributable to the company was $850.7 million, or $2.33 per share, for the third quarter ended July 31, 2014, compared with $996.5 million, or $2.56 per share, for the same period of 2013. For the first nine months of the year, net income attributable to Deere & Company was $2.513 billion, or $6.79 per share, compared with $2.730 billion, or $6.97 per share, last year. Worldwide net sales and revenues decreased 5 percent, to $9.500 billion, for the third quarter and were down 4 percent, to $27.102 billion, for nine months. Net sales of the equipment operations were $8.723 billion for the quarter and $24.918 billion for nine months, compared with $9.316 billion and $26.373 billion for the same periods last year. "Deere's third-quarter performance reflected moderating conditions in the global farm sector, which have negatively affected demand for farm machinery and contributed to lower sales and profits for our agricultural-equipment business," said Samuel R. Allen, chairman and chief executive officer, Deere & Company. "At the same time, our construction and forestry and financial services divisions had higher profit, showing the benefit of a broad-based business lineup. Overall, it was a quarter of solid performance, with income exceeded only by last year's record for the corresponding period." For additional information, go to www.deere.com. Deere announces third-quarter earnings On Aug. 6, Blount International, Inc., Portland, Ore., announced results for the second quarter ended June 30, 2014. Sales in the second quarter were $235.4 million, an increase of $15 million or 6.8 percent compared to the second quarter of 2013. Operating income for the second quarter of 2014, which includes $0.5-million facility closure and restructuring charges, was $22.4 million compared to $19.3 million in the same quarter last year. Second-quarter net income was $12.3 million, or $0.25 per diluted share, compared to $9.3 million, or $0.19 per diluted share, in the second quarter of 2013. "We continued to perform well in the second quarter," stated Josh Collins, Blount's chairman and CEO. "Additionally, demand continued to increase across nearly all geographic regions. The improved demand and the results of our profit improvement initiatives over the past year have bolstered our confidence that we will achieve or outperform our sales and profit targets for 2014." Collins continued, "We are maintaining a strong focus on our Operational Excellence and other targeted cost-reduction initiatives that will continue to enhance our businesses long term. Additionally, our board of directors has authorized a share repurchase program that will return cash to shareholders as our balance sheet and leverage levels continue to improve." Blount operates primarily in two business segments — the Forestry, Lawn and Garden ("FLAG") segment and the Farm, Ranch and Agriculture ("FRAG") segment. The company reports separate results for the FLAG and FRAG segments. Blount's Concrete Cutting and Finishing ("CCF") business is included in "Corporate and Other." For further details, visit blount.com. Blount announces second-quarter results Briggs & Stratton Corporation announced on Aug. 14 financial results for its fourth fiscal quarter and fiscal year ended June 29, 2014. Among the highlights: Fourth-quarter fiscal 2014 consolidated net sales increased 4.1 percent to $496.8 million compared to the prior year. Fourth-quarter fiscal 2014 engines segment sales increased 6.3 percent to $317.8 million compared to the prior year. Fourth-quarter 2014 consolidated adjusted net income increased 36 percent to $14.6 million, from adjusted net income of $10.7 million in the fourth quarter of fiscal 2013. Fourth-quarter 2014 adjusted diluted earnings per share were $0.31, or $0.09 higher than the prior year. Fiscal 2014 full-year consolidated net sales of $1.86 billion were consistent with the prior fiscal year; fiscal 2014 organic sales growth of 4 percent after excluding approximately $100 million of storm-related sales in the previous fiscal year and acquisition-related growth. Quarterly dividend increased by 4 percent to $0.125 per share. Board of directors authorized an additional $50 million in share repurchases. "Despite a slower-than-normal start to the lawn and garden season this spring, we saw improved sales results for our engines and products due to the new innovative products launched this year and market share gains made within the large-engine category," said Todd J. Teske, chairman, president and chief executive officer of Briggs & Stratton Corporation. "In addition to higher sales, we saw margin expansion in our engines business even as we continued to invest in our future with new product launches and building out our international sales distribution in emerging regions. Within our Products segment, our new pressure washer product launches and our commercial lawn and garden business continued to perform well even as we saw reduced demand for generators in the U.S., following an uneventful storm season and lower pre-season snow thrower sales to our European customers due to a significantly-below- normal snow season in Europe last winter." For more information, visit www.briggsandstratton. com. Briggs & Stratton reports results for the fourth quarter and fiscal year 2014