Wednesday, February 06, 2008
SOME GOOD NEWS FOR MONACO
Feb 6 (Reuters) - Recreational vehicle maker Monaco Coach Corp (MNC.N: Quote, Profile, Research) posted a quarterly profit that handily beat market expectations, as it increased market share and overhauled production lines to improve margins.
Shares of the company, which lost about 40 percent of their market value in the past 52 weeks, rose more than 19 percent to $11.06 in morning trade, making them the biggest percentage gainer on the New York Stock Exchange. Net income for the fourth-quarter was $2.7 million, or 9 cents a share, compared with a loss of $562,000, or 2 cents a share, a year ago.
Analysts on average were expecting a profit of 2 cents a share, before special items, according to Reuters Estimates.
Revenue fell to $292.1 million, from $299.2 million a year earlier, and was short of analysts' expectations of $293.2 million.
Net sales for the motorized recreational vehicle segment rose 1.4 percent to $244.3 million. However, sales for the Towable RV and Motorhome Resorts segments fell.
The recent interest rate cuts by the Federal Reserve should help the RV market in the second half of 2008, the Coburg, Oregon-based company said.
Leisure sectors, such as motor homes, had been facing a tough environment as rising interest rates, the slumping U.S. housing market and tighter credit markets combined to weaken consumer confidence.
Looking ahead, the company said it would achieve its prior outlook if the RV market is flat in 2008, which would likely require a rebound in consumer confidence.
In October, the company had forecast 2008 sales to be little changed from 2007, at $1.27 billion to $1.28 billion. Monaco expects its internal improvements and anticipated gains in market share to help post 2008 results similar to 2007 if RV markets were down about 10 percent, it said. (Reporting by Anant Vijay Kala in Bangalore; Editing by Jarshad Kakkrakandy)
Shares of the company, which lost about 40 percent of their market value in the past 52 weeks, rose more than 19 percent to $11.06 in morning trade, making them the biggest percentage gainer on the New York Stock Exchange. Net income for the fourth-quarter was $2.7 million, or 9 cents a share, compared with a loss of $562,000, or 2 cents a share, a year ago.
Analysts on average were expecting a profit of 2 cents a share, before special items, according to Reuters Estimates.
Revenue fell to $292.1 million, from $299.2 million a year earlier, and was short of analysts' expectations of $293.2 million.
Net sales for the motorized recreational vehicle segment rose 1.4 percent to $244.3 million. However, sales for the Towable RV and Motorhome Resorts segments fell.
The recent interest rate cuts by the Federal Reserve should help the RV market in the second half of 2008, the Coburg, Oregon-based company said.
Leisure sectors, such as motor homes, had been facing a tough environment as rising interest rates, the slumping U.S. housing market and tighter credit markets combined to weaken consumer confidence.
Looking ahead, the company said it would achieve its prior outlook if the RV market is flat in 2008, which would likely require a rebound in consumer confidence.
In October, the company had forecast 2008 sales to be little changed from 2007, at $1.27 billion to $1.28 billion. Monaco expects its internal improvements and anticipated gains in market share to help post 2008 results similar to 2007 if RV markets were down about 10 percent, it said. (Reporting by Anant Vijay Kala in Bangalore; Editing by Jarshad Kakkrakandy)
