Dana’s Earnings Drop 72%; Company Cites High Steel Prices

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eavy-duty component supplier Dana Corp. said Wednesday it earned $18 million or 12 cents a share in the first quarter, down 72% from last year’s $65 million or 43 cents a share.

Dana, which makes axles, brakes and chassis-component systems, had reduced its earnings forecast in late March to 11 to 13 cents a share, from an earlier forecas of 17 to 23 cents per share.

The company attributed the loss continuing high steel prices.

“The single greatest factor impacting our earnings was roughly $32 million in additional steel costs that we incurred compared to the first quarter of 2004,” said Mike Burns, Dana’s chief executive officer.

Its sales rose to $2.5 billion from $2.3 billion a year ago, the company said.

Dana said the earnings included $13 million from a discontinued automotive aftermarket business that were sold in November and $2 million in net gains from Dana Credit Corp.