JLG Industries Inc has reported fiscal-year per-share improvement, a new private-label dealer financing program and an accelerated transition for its OmniQuip acquisition.
The Pennsylvania-based maker of access equipment and telehandlers was "dynamically positioned for growth when the economic recovery arrives", chairman Bill Lasky said on September 23.
Mr Lasky said JLG had improved its manufacturing and operating margins, generated positive cash flow of USD28 million and reduced its debt by 14% to USD171 million.
For the fiscal year ended July 31, JLG reported profit of USD14.2 million on revenues of USD759.8 million. Revenue sources included sales of USD733.5 million, financing of USD19.2 million and rentals of USD7.1 million. Last year JLG reported a loss of USD101.6 million on revenues of USD770.1 million.
JLG earned US33 cents per share, compared to last year's US30 cents. For the year ended July 31, JLG had higher sales of telehandlers at USD119.5 million, but lower sales of aerial work platforms at USD435.2 million and excavators at USD48.4 million.
JLG expects its new Pro-Fit series of electric scissor lifts to reverse the sales decline in the excavator market. JLG will manufacture the line at plants in the USA and Belgium.
For the comparable years by geographic region, revenues from European countries slipped to USD145.0 million in FY2003 from USD167.9 million in 2002.
US revenues were basically flat at USD555.2 million, and revenues from Australia, Pacific Rim nations and Latin America increased to USD59.6 million from USD45.9 million last year.
On September 19, JLG disclosed a non-exclusive program agreement with GE Dealer Finance to provide private financing for JLG customers. GE Dealer Finance had purchased more than USD70 million of lease receivables from JLG subsidiary Access Financial Solutions Inc (AFS) during JLG's 2003 fiscal year.
The firm's customers will continue to have direct interaction with AFS while GE Dealer Finance serves as the primary financing source. Under the program, JLG will not retain debt from financing transactions on its balance sheet as the company has in the past.
After acquiring the OmniQuip business unit of Textron Inc on August 1, JLG has accelerated the transition and integration process from an estimated 14 months to a now anticipated six months. On August 4, JLG announced plans to close OmniQuip's Port Washington, Wisconsin, facility and move operations to JLG's McConnellsburg plant.
In early September, JLG completed a severance agreement with the union representing OmniQuip employees. Mr Lasky said manufacturing of some of OmniQuip's relocated SkyTrak telescopic handlers would begin in McConnellsburg on September 29. All OmniQuip production would be moved to McConnellsburg by the end of January.