23.07.2009

Manitou down 50%

Manitou the French based telehandler and aerial lift manufacturer has reported first half revenues of €358 million, 50.7 percent lower than during the first half of 2008.

Sales in France dropped to €132.7 million a fall of over 55 percent, while sales in other EU countries dropped 57.5 percent to 140.2 million. Shipments to other areas, which includes Gehl in the USA, fell almost 14 percent to €85 million.

Second quarter revenues were down 55 percent, but order intake for Rough Terrain fork trucks, largely telehandlers, improved 15 percent in the three months to June 30th, when compared to the first quarter. However they were still 50 percent below the same period last year.

Manitou says that lower sales reflected a ‘de-stocking’ policy by almost all of its dealers, which was now largely done. So that order intake was now reflecting end user purchases.

Sales at Gehl, were down 73 percent to $53 million, thanks to its dealers cutting inventory, and a slower market overall. Manitou says that sales by Gehl dealers were double those of the manufacturer reflecting the inventory reduction strategies that most are following.

Given the first half result and some uncertainty in the agricultural sector in many parts of Europe due to mil pricing policies, Manitou now expects the full year to come in at the bottom end of its forecast range – in other words 40 to 50 percent lower than last year.

Vertikal Comment

These results are not at all surprising apart from the fact that they could have been much worse given the state of the telehandler market in big volume markets. Obviously the addition of Gehl has helped enhance the headline numbers, but even without Gehl sales would have been down 56 percent.

The new chief executive is well entrenched now and the financial stand-off with its American banks well behind it, so with order intake showing some early signs of nudging upwards Manitou may well go into 2010 with a small spring in its step?