For the fifth consecutive year, Deere & Company has achieved a ranking among FORTUNE magazine's Top 50 Most Admired Companies.

Deere is ranked 40th on the Most Admired list, which is created after an assessment of more than 1400 companies around the world and a survey of business leaders worldwide. FORTUNE includes the largest 1000 US companies, as well as non-US companies with annual revenues of more than $10 billion that are ranked in FORTUNE's global 500 database. 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, Deere's chairman and CEO.

The initial ranking of the 1400 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 & Farm Equipment category. After the quantitative work is completed, several thousand business leaders are surveyed to determine the Top 50 Most Admired.