Navistar Cuts Fiscal 1Q Loss
Navistar International Corp. reduced losses in its fiscal first quarter as the company reported growth in vehicle sales and a continued reduction in warranty costs.
The OEM, which builds International trucks and MaxxForce engines, reported a loss of $42 million, or 52 cents per share, compared with a loss of $248 million, or $3.05, in the same period last year.
Revenue for the quarter ended Jan. 31 was $2.42 billion, up 10% from $2.21 billion a year ago, the Lisle, Illinois-based manufacturer said.
“In the first quarter, we once again increased our production, chargeouts and order backlog,” CEO Troy Clarke said in the March 3 report. “Our improved product quality is driving reduced warranty spend, and we continue to lower our break-even point.”
The latest report represented Navistar’s second smallest quarterly loss since the third quarter of 2012, when the company first announced that it would abandon its previous engine emission strategy.
Since then, Navistar has reported losses in 10 consecutive quarters while transitioning to selective catalytic reduction technology to meet federal emission standards, a process that Clarke said was “essentially complete” during an analyst event Feb. 4 at the company’s Lisle, Illinois, headquarters.
Navistar narrowly missed breaking even in the third quarter of 2014, reporting a $2 million loss. It lost $72 million in the fourth quarter.
Navistar said chargeouts for its Classes 6-8 trucks and buses in the United States and Canada climbed 17% year-over-year during the quarter, including a 42% jump in school buses, a 25% gain in medium-duty trucks, a 7% increase in Class 8 heavy-duty trucks and a 5% rise for Class 8 severe-service trucks.
The company also said its order backlog for Classes 6-8 trucks increased 27% from a year earlier.
