Harley-Davidson Q3 Profit Down, But Tops View; Shares Up

(RTTNews) - Harley-Davidson Inc. (HOG) Tuesday reported a smaller profit for the third quarter, hurt mainly by lower revenues, even as the motorcycle maker's earnings trumped Wall Street's expectations reflecting strong motorcycle sales, especially in key U.S. market.

Shares of the company are currently trading up over six percent on the New York Stock Exchange, following the announcement of results.

The Milwaukee, Wisconsin-based motorcycle maker's third-quarter profit dropped to $150.1 million or $0.69 per share from $162.7 million or $0.73 per share last year. On average, 17 analysts polled by Thomson Reuters expected a profit of $0.60 per share for the quarter. Analysts' estimates typically exclude special items.

Harley-Davidson said its third-quarter results reflect lower motorcycle shipments, as planned, compared to last year's third quarter.

Motorcycles and related products revenue dropped to $1.13 billion from $1.18 billion last year. Analysts had a consensus revenue estimate of $1.14 billion for the quarter.

Dealers worldwide sold 73,217 new Harley-Davidson motorcycles, up from 70,517 motorcycles in the third quarter last year. Sales by U.S. dealers rose 3.4 percent to 50,167 motorcycles, while sales were up 12.8 percent in the Asia Pacific Region, up 1.7 percent in the EMEA Region and up 7.0 percent in the Latin America Region. Sales declined 5.8 percent in Canada.

Chief Executive Keith Wandell said, "Harley-Davidson's third-quarter financial results were in line with our expectations, and we are on track for a year of growth and strong financial performance in 2014. We continue to see the success of our product, manufacturing and retail strategies, which are delivering an outstanding customer experience, driving bottom-line improvement and expanding the reach of the brand."

Moving ahead, Harley-Davidson continues to expect to ship 270,000 to 275,000 motorcycles to dealers and distributors worldwide in 2014, an increase of about 3.5 to 5.5 percent.

HOG is currently trading at $62.25, up $3.88 or 6.63%, on the NYSE.