Arctic’s 1Q Profit Triples
Arctic Cat Inc., Thief River Falls, Minn., reported net earnings of $448,000, or $0.02 per diluted share, for the fiscal 2006 first quarter ended June 30. This compares to net earnings of $124,000, or $0.01 per diluted share, for the same period of 2004.
Arctic’s net sales for the first quarter ended June 30, 2005, were $107.9 million, up 5% from sales of $102.6 million in the same period last year.
The company’s ATV sales increased 6% to $41.4 million versus $39.2 million in the first quarter of last year; snowmobile sales rose 3% to $52.0 million, compared to $50.7 million in the prior-year first quarter; and sales of parts, garments and accessories were $14.5 million, up from $12.7 million in the year-ago period
“We are pleased to report another record first quarter,” said Christopher A. Twomey, chairman and chief executive officer. “Sales increased across all product lines and exceeded our expectations, due to slightly higher than anticipated sales to dealers.”
Arctic Cat anticipates that net sales will grow 3% to 5% and be in the range of $710 million to $723 million for the fiscal year ending March 31, 2006. However, the company is forecasting lower margins in fiscal 2006, due to increased raw material costs, lower snowmobile sales and a less favorable yen/dollar exchange rate, resulting in estimated full-year diluted earnings per share in the range of $1.31 to $1.40 (Suzuki owns approximately 32% of Arctic’s stock and supplies the U.S. manufacturer with most of its engines).
“Our outlook for fiscal 2006 remains unchanged,” said Twomey. “We continue to anticipate record full-year sales, but lower margins are expected to constrain earnings.”
Arctic shares have traded in 52-week a range of $18.63 to $29.20, and have lost 15% so far this year.
