Manitou Group posted €523 million in revenue for the fourth quarter (about U.S. $597 million) compared to €432 million in the fourth quarter of 2017, a 21.1-percent increase. For the full year, Manitou leaped 18.4 percent, with €1.884 billion compared to €1.591 billion in 2017.
The Material Handling and Access division posted quarterly revenue of €364 million compared to €300 million in the fourth quarter of 2017, a 21.3 percent hike. For the full year, revenue increased from €1.095 billion in 2017 to €1.294 billion, an 18.2-percent incline. The division made progress in all sectors and geographies. The long-term growth prospects are leading the division to increase its industrial capacities in the mobile elevating work platform sector. The construction of a second AWP factory in Cande, France, has been approved, at a €26 million investment.
The Compact Equipment Products generated fourth quarter revenue of €88 million, compared to €68 million in last year’s fourth quarter, a 29.4-percent jump. For the full year, sales in CEP were €314 million, compared to €244 a year ago, a 28.7-percent hike. This division delivered the group’s strongest growth with very sustained development in the United States, particularly among rental companies.
The Services & Solutions division reported €72 million in revenue, compared to €64 million in the fourth quarter of 2017, a 12.5 percent increase. For the full year, revenue was €276 million compared to €252 million a year ago, a 9.5-percent climb. At the beginning of 2019, this division began the project of globalizing the digitization and connectivity of machines.
“2018 is again a record year for the group,” said Michel Denis, president and CEO. “Revenues of €1,884 million, representing like-for-like growth of 19 percent compared to 2017, cumulative order intake of €1.9 billion, and an order book that, for the first time in our history, has crossed the €1 billion threshold. Overall, the group will have grown by around 40 percent in just two years.
“Looking back at the last quarter of 2018, we have made progress in all regions, particularly in Europe and North America. By sector of activity, it is in construction that our development has been the strongest, a sector in which our performance with rental companies has been very strong on all continents. The dynamics in agriculture and industries were also excellent. Year-end order intake reached an exceptional level. Based above all on solid fundamentals and market confidence, they were amplified for some customers by an anticipation linked to the extension of our order delivery times. In order to meet our customers’ requests, we have succeeded in optimizing our production rates. This has allowed us to replenish certain stocks of mid-range products in order to regain a certain commercial flexibility as from Q1 2019.”
