Wabash Reports Fourth-Quarter Profit
Trailer manufacturer Wabash National Corp. reported a fourth-quarter operating profit compared with an operating loss a year ago, as new trailer shipments topped the high end of the company’s expectations.
Net income was $4.8 million, or 7 cents a share, compared with a profit of $4.7 million, or 15 cents, a year ago, Wabash said. Net sales rose to $242 million, from $85 million.
Operating income was $5.7 million, compared with an operating loss of $11.9 million a year earlier, and marked the company’s best operating performance since 2007, CEO Dick Giromini said in a statement.
The quarter’s 10,100 new trailer shipments “met and slightly exceeded the high-end of our guidance, reflecting a healthier demand environment and improved pick-up performance by our customers during the quarter,” he said.
Full-year new trailer shipments of 24,900, nearly double the level of 2009, Giromini added.
For the year, Wabash reported a loss of $167 million, or $3.36 a share, compared with a loss of $105 million, or $3.48, in 2009.
Its full-year operating loss narrowed to $15.4 million, from a $66.1 million loss in 2009.
