Arctic Cat Reports Record 2Q Sales

Arctic Cat Inc., Thief River Falls, Minn., reported record net sales of $240.7 million for the second quarter ended Sept. 30, 2004, up from $237.7 million in the same quarter last year. Earnings declined, however, to $19.7 million, or 94 cents per diluted share, down from $21.6 million, or 98 cents per diluted share, in the same quarter last year. Arctic said the earnings decline was caused by a one-week transportation delay in shipping its higher margin snowmobiles at the end of the quarter. Those sales were recorded in the third quarter instead of the second quarter, it said.
For the six-month period, the company reported earnings of $19.8 million, or 94 cents per diluted share, on sales of $343.3 million, down from $21.7 million, or 98 cents per diluted share, in the first six months last year. Six-month revenues last year were $314.8 million.
At the same time, Arctic said it has reached an agreement with its Alaska distributor that will enable it to sell directly to dealers there. The move is expected to expand Cat’s sales there and improve its gross margins, the company said. The company also reported that it had repurchased 250,000 shares of its common stock during the quarter.
ATV sales increased 10% in the second quarter and year-to-date sales for the six months were up 14% compared to the same period last year. Snowmobile sales decreased 5% during the quarter due to the shipping timing, but sales for the six months were up 7%.