08.02.2017

Profits crash for Tadano

Japanese crane and access manufacturer Tadano has reported a steep fall in revenues and profits for the third quarter.

The company has issued a brief report which shows revenues for the nine months to the end of December fell 14.5 percent to ¥128 billion ($1.14 billion) In Japan the company reported revenues down 5.4 percent to ¥68.1 billion ($605 million)due to lower sales of mobile and loader cranes, partially offset by an increase in the sales of aerial work platforms. Exports, which largely comprises of mobile cranes, fell 22.9 percent ¥ 59.9 billion ($533 million)

Lower sales volumes and exchange rate issues hit pre-tax profits hard, sending them 34 percent lower to ¥10 billion ($89 million).

As a result of the weakening performance the company has lowered its full year projections and now expects to end the year with revenues 14.1 percent lower at ¥180 billion ($1.6 billion) while it anticipates even steep falls in pre-tax profits to ¥11.5 billion ($102 million)- 41 percent down on the previous year.

Vertikal Comment

This is not great news from Tadano, although it is still outperforming most of its main rivals, the collapse in profitability is surprising and is possibly down to more than just currency swings. The delay with its flagship 600 tonne All Terrain might have had some impact on its full year revenue numbers? And it may well have had to take a few write downs and allowances for bad debts? All will become clearer when the company publishes its full year accounts in the summer.

In the meantime the company is actually very well placed to benefit from the current economic climate and the state of the industry. Its products are widely respected and appreciated and while it has made some progress on expanding its distribution footprint, it could do with more firepower and marketing cohesion to crack markets where it remains weak and has most upside potential. With some manufacturers struggling with losses you would think that Tadano would be investing more to exploit the situation, especially in markets where it is a minor player.