What happened
Shares of Thor Industries (THO 1.59%) fell as much as 13.7% early Thursday, then settled to trade down 7.3% as of 12:45 p.m. EST after the RV manufacturer released weaker-than-expected fiscal first-quarter results.
More specifically Thor's quarterly revenue fell 21.3% year over year to $1.76 billion. That translated to net income of $14 million, or $0.26 per share -- though that figure includes acquisition costs totaling $57.1 million, or $1.02 per share. Even after adjusted for one-time items, however, Thor industries' results were significantly below consensus predictions for earnings of $1.67 per share on revenue of $1.92 billion.
IMAGE SOURCE: THOR INDUSTRIES.
So what
Thor's top-line declines were driven by a 21% decrease in Towable segment sales, to $1.28 billion, and a 23.9% drop in Motorized RV sales to $431.2 million. In September, Thor Industries also entered into an agreement to acquire Germany-based RV manufacturer Erwin Hymer Group (EHG) for approximately €2.1 billion in cash and stock.
Thor CEO Bob Martin remained positive, noting that "consumer confidence is high, unemployment is low, and there is ample access to credit for RV buyers."
Martin added:
Our first-quarter 2019 financial results reflect the return to normalized historical levels of first-quarter revenue following the unprecedented record first quarter of fiscal year 2018. As dealers continue to right-size inventory, we are taking advantage of our flexible production and variable cost model to align Company production with demand, and I continue to be optimistic about Thor's long-term growth potential and ability to generate value for our shareholders, especially with the pending strategic acquisition of EHG. Consumers are increasingly looking to spend time outdoors with family and friends, which we believe will translate to demand for our products.
Now what
Thor Industries management didn't provide specific forward financial guidance, but rather echoed last quarter's outlook stating that they "remain focused on the long term and are optimistic about global growth opportunities."
Given the company's relative underperformance in the meantime, however, it's hardly surprising to see shares of Thor industries pulling back today.
