Wabash Reports Decline in Fourth-Quarter Earnings, Higher Full-Year Profits
Wabash National Corp., North America’s largest trailer maker, saw fourth-quarter profits and revenue slip compared with the 2015 period. Net income, however, rose for the full year on lower revenue, the company reported Jan. 31.
Net income for the quarter ended Dec. 31 was $23 million, or 36 cents per diluted share, compared with $33.3 million, or 50 cents, a year earlier, the Lafayette, Indian-based company reported.
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Quarterly revenue fell to $462 million, down 15% compared with $544 million in the 2015 period, the company said.
New [van] trailers shipped in the quarter fell to 14,600, down 10% from 16,200 in the 2015 period. Year-to-date shipments fell to 58,850 from 61,300 a year earlier.
Shipments of tank trailers made in its diversified products division fell to 550 in the quarter, down from 750 a year earlier. For the full year, shipments dropped to 2,100 from 3,400 in the 2015 period amid ongoing weakness in the chemical and energy markets, the company said.
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“New trailer shipments of 60,950 [including 2,100 tank trailers] for the year exceeded our previous guidance, driven by strong customer pick-up. We enter 2017 with a strong backlog of orders totaling $802 million, an increase of 25% compared with the previous quarter,” CEO Dick Giromini said in a statement.
Wabash expects trailer orders to fall below the “historically elevated” levels experienced in 2016 and 2015 but demand will remain healthy, as “fleet age, regulatory compliance requirements and customer profitability all support a continuation of an extended trailer cycle,” he said.
At the same time, the company intends to emphasize improvements in productivity, cost structure and the performance of its diversified products division while also “developing new growth opportunities through new product and market expansion efforts,” he said.
For the full year, net income climbed to $119.4 million, or $1.82, on sales of $1.85 billion. That compared with $104.3 million, or $1.50, on sales of $2.03 billion for the twelve months ended Dec. 31, 2015, Wabash said.
