Deere
Through the investors’ lenses
Each of these investors has said in public what they look at before buying. Click a name to see how this company measures up — a tick where it passes one of their tests, a cross where it does not.
Warren Buffett 3/3
| Measure | DE | Checked against | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Owner earnings | $5.90bn | positive | ✓ |
| Return on equity | 19.4% | median 11.7% | ✓ |
| Debt to equity | 0.79x | median 0.79x | ✓ |
| Operating margin | — | median 15.0% | — |
Passes 3 of 3. To be clear: Warren Buffett has never said anything about Deere. These are the company’s own figures put through the tests he described. What he looks at, and why →
Terry Smith 1/2
| Measure | DE | Checked against | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Return on capital employed | — | median 10.1% | — |
| Cash conversion | 1.48x | median 1.78x | ✗ |
| Operating margin | — | median 15.0% | — |
| Debt to equity | 0.79x | median 0.79x | ✓ |
Passes 1 of 2. To be clear: Terry Smith has never said anything about Deere. These are the company’s own figures put through the tests he described. What he looks at, and why →
Charlie Munger 1/1
| Measure | DE | Checked against | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Return on capital employed | — | median 10.1% | — |
| Return on equity | 19.4% | median 11.7% | ✓ |
| Operating margin | — | median 15.0% | — |
Passes 1 of 1. To be clear: Charlie Munger has never said anything about Deere. These are the company’s own figures put through the tests he described. What he looks at, and why →
Chuck Akre 3/4
| Measure | DE | Checked against | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Return on equity | 19.4% | median 11.7% | ✓ |
| Debt to equity | 0.79x | median 0.79x | ✓ |
| Cash conversion | 1.48x | median 1.78x | ✗ |
| Return on equity, sustained | 10 of 10 | 8 of 10 above median | ✓ |
Passes 3 of 4. To be clear: Chuck Akre has never said anything about Deere. These are the company’s own figures put through the tests he described. What he looks at, and why →
Philip Fisher 2/2
| Measure | DE | Checked against | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Operating margin | — | median 15.0% | — |
| Net margin | 11.0% | median 10.2% | ✓ |
| Return on capital employed | — | median 10.1% | — |
| Operating margin, held or improving | 17.5% | 10-yr median 12.1% | ✓ |
Passes 2 of 2. To be clear: Philip Fisher has never said anything about Deere. These are the company’s own figures put through the tests he described. What he looks at, and why →
Walter Schloss 1/1
| Measure | DE | Checked against | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Current ratio | — | median 1.25x | — |
| Debt to equity | 0.79x | median 0.79x | ✓ |
Passes 1 of 1. To be clear: Walter Schloss has never said anything about Deere. These are the company’s own figures put through the tests he described. What he looks at, and why →
Benjamin Graham 1/1
| Measure | DE | Checked against | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Current ratio | — | 2.00x published | — |
| Long-term debt to working capital | — | 1.00x published | — |
| Positive earnings, ten years running | 10 yrs | 10 published | ✓ |
Passes 1 of 1. To be clear: Benjamin Graham has never said anything about Deere. These are the company’s own figures put through the tests he described. What he looks at, and why →
Peter Lynch 2/2
| Measure | DE | Checked against | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Debt to equity | 0.79x | median 0.79x | ✓ |
| Net margin | 11.0% | median 10.2% | ✓ |
Passes 2 of 2. To be clear: Peter Lynch has never said anything about Deere. These are the company’s own figures put through the tests he described. What he looks at, and why →
| Basis | Payout | Why |
|---|---|---|
| GAAP earnings | 34.6% | whyThe figure most screeners publish. |
| Operating cash flow | 23.1% | whyBefore capital spending. |
| Free cash flow | 28.2% | whyAfter maintaining the business. |
Spread between highest and lowest: 11.6 percentage points. Same filings, different denominators.
Coverage rating 42 / 100 — Tight. ? Peer standing 24/50Direction 10/30Stability 7/20
Free cash flow payout, last 6 years
| Fiscal year | Payout |
|---|---|
| 2025-11-02 | 28.2% |
| 2024-10-27 | 21.1% |
| 2023-10-29 | 20.1% |
| 2022-10-30 | 36.8% |
| 2021-10-31 | 15.1% |
| 2020-11-01 | 14.3% |
Coverage worsened sharply this year, 21.1% to 28.2%, after no clear trend before it. One year is not a trend, but it is worth knowing which direction the last one moved.
49% of the 74 industrials here pay out more.
The arithmetic
- GAAP earnings — dividends declared per share $6.41 ÷ diluted EPS $18.50
- Operating cash flow — dividends paid $1,720m ÷ operating cash flow $7,459m
- Free cash flow — dividends paid $1,720m ÷ (operating cash flow $7,459m − capex $1,360m)
Where the figures came from
- 10-K filed 2025-12-18 · accession 0001104659-25-122321
All public at sec.gov — you should not have to take our word for it.
Caveats on this company
- ebitda built from net income (no operating income reported)
Computed straight from SEC XBRL. A number that looks wrong to you is more useful to us than agreement — tell us.
What the free cash flow payout ratio measures, and where every company here sits on it.
Also on: rated tight · when it files.
When this changes
Every figure above is recomputed whenever Deere files. The monthly letter carries what filed, what moved, and one finding computed across every company here.