The Manitowoc Co., a leading global manufacturer of cranes and lifting solutions, recently reported third-quarter net sales of $399.4 million, compared to $349.9 million in the third quarter of 2016, a 14.1-percent increase. Third-quarter orders of $376.1 million were up 21 percent from the comparable period in 2016. Backlog totaled $467.9 million on Sept. 30, 2017, up 32 percent from the third-quarter 2016 ending backlog of $353.6 million.
The majority of the year-over-year increase was attributable to increased demand, primarily in the U.S. market, partly offset by lower demand in the Asia-Pacific market. Approximately 40 percent of unit revenue in the third-quarter came from new products introduced since becoming a stand-alone crane company.
The company reported net income from continuing operations of $9.7 million in the third-quarter 2017 versus a net loss from continuing operations of $138.9 million in the third quarter of 2016. Non-GAAP adjusted EBITDA for the third-quarter 2017 was $20.8 million compared to negative $20.9 million in the same period last year.
“Our third quarter came in largely as expected, reflecting some signs of positive momentum in certain end markets such as the U.S. energy and commercial construction markets,” said Barry Pennypacker, president and CEO of The Manitowoc Co. “Orders in the quarter continued to be led by the strength of our customers’ demand for our new products. The structural cost reductions we have made over the last 18 months, coupled with higher year-over-year sales volumes resulted in significant profitability gains over the comparable period.
“I am encouraged by the progress we continue to make in streamlining our organizational structure, providing us the necessary momentum to achieve our long-term stated goal of double-digit operating margins by 2020. Our strategy to evolve into the world’s leading crane company remains on track, as we continue to institutionalize the principles of The Manitowoc Way.”
Manitowoc is a leading provider of crawler cranes, tower cranes, and mobile cranes for the heavy construction industry, which are complemented by a slate of industry-leading aftermarket product support services. In 2016, Manitowoc’s net sales totaled $1.6 billion, with over half generated outside the United States.
About the Author
Michael Roth
Editor
Michael Roth has covered the equipment rental industry full time for RER since 1989 and has served as the magazine’s editor in chief since 1994. He has nearly 30 years experience as a professional journalist. Roth has visited hundreds of rental centers and industry manufacturers, written hundreds of feature stories for RER and thousands of news stories for the magazine and its electronic newsletter RER Reports. Roth has interviewed leading executives for most of the industry’s largest rental companies and manufacturers as well as hundreds of smaller independent companies. He has visited with and reported on rental companies and manufacturers in Europe, Central America and Asia as well as Mexico, Canada and the United States. Roth was co-founder of RER Reports, the industry’s first weekly newsletter, which began as a fax newsletter in 1996, and later became an online newsletter. Roth has spoken at conventions sponsored by the American Rental Association, Associated Equipment Distributors, California Rental Association and other industry events and has spoken before industry groups in several countries. He lives and works in Los Angeles when he’s not traveling to cover industry events.