28.04.2005

Manitowoc crane sales jump 42 percent

Manitowoc's crane group saw its first-quarter 2005 net sales increase by 42 percent to $358.0 million, from $252.6 million in 2004. Operating Income nearly doubled to $20.4 million, from $10.4 million last year, and the backlog increased substantially, to $532 million, up from $340 million at the end of 2004.

"Our Crane segment posted significant improvement in sales, earnings, and margins compared to the first quarter of 2004. Our global strategy is clearly paying off," said Terry D. Growcock, Manitowoc's chairman and chief executive officer.

"We saw increased demand in all of our geographic markets, with strong worldwide demand for tower cranes, mobile telescopic cranes, and boom trucks. Crawler crane demand has also been strong in many non-US markets.

"Looking ahead, our solid backlog gives us confidence that worldwide demand for our products continues to grow. Additionally, we continue to see signs -- including increased utilization rates and quoting activity -- that the North American crawler crane market may begin to rebound later in 2005 or in early 2006."

The Manitowoc group as a whole saw sales rise by30 percent to $536.9 million, from $411.8 million during the same period last year. Operating income rose 30 percent to $29.3 million

"This was an impressive quarter for Manitowoc, as strong growth in revenue and earnings demonstrated the benefits of our market leadership and the success of our global strategies," said Growcock.

"Our performance was led by our largest segment, the Crane Group, which exceeded expectations in all of its markets. Of particular significance, the Crane Group generated positive EVA, meeting our objective that acquisitions deliver increased earnings within two years and become EVA positive within three. The strength of cranes is particularly encouraging because this business tends to lag the construction industry business cycle. If past trends remain consistent, we are several years away from the next peak in the global crane market.


A full analysis will be posted later in the week.