APR 2024
NOW IN OUR
32nd ! YEAR
™
THE LEADING BUSINESS MAGAZINE FOR THE INTERNATIONAL CUSTOM MOTORCYCLE AND PARTS INDUSTRY
H-D 2023 North American Retail
APR 2024
ISSUE # 297
Down -10% at 105,900 Unit Sales ;
‡
SHOWZONE 10,12,14,16
Motorcycle Revenue Flat at $ 3.799bn
As anticipated , Harley ' s Q4 and 2023 full year results do not make good reading , even though profits are up over 2022 . Counterintuitively , however , ' Wall Street ' was less concerned than might have been expected . However , that may not necessarily be a direct response to the results , though the profits and dividend likely ' trumped ' the metal . After some initial hesitancy about what was seen in the results , in the four days after they were released ( February 8 , 2024 ), Harley ' s share price had risen by nearly 15 % from $ 33.21 to as high as some $ 38.00 four days later . A month later , and it was hovering around the $ 39 mark , having been as high as $ 40 . Whether that response has been a direct response to the results showed , or just part of a generally strong NYSE recovery , only time will tell ( Polaris Industries and other adjacent stocks had also been doing better ). Either way , despite the raw ingredients of the data , a clearly frustrated sounding
CEO and beleaguered board would be taking some consolation in the recipe for strategic success still appearing to be robust .
Chairman , President and CEO of Harley-Davidson Inc ., Jochen Zeitz , told investors and analysts that " our average unit profitability is up from [ around ] $ 1,300 to $ 3,700 . So not being obsessed by unit sales over the past few years has served us well in terms of overall profitability , which is improved from 6.3 % to 13.6 %."
Chairman , President and CEO of Harley-Davidson Inc ., Jochen Zeitz , is quoted as saying : " In the third year of our Hardwire strategy , we have made progress in key elements of our strategic plan , focusing on our most profitable products and markets , which we believe will continue to yield benefits to the business and have set us up for longterm value creation despite the current challenging environment for the industry ." In several references made during the hour-long call with investors and analysts , he and his C-suite team , including outgoing Chief Commercial Officer Edel O ' Sullivan , appeared to repeatedly try to draw the toxin from those who are focused on what they see as a fetishistic focus on unit numbers . Pointing instead to being " excited by the early read of our new Model Year launch " as Zeitz put it , describing it as " the most comprehensive product development in the touring platform in well over ten years " and one that will " redefine the Harley-Davidson Grand American Touring experience for years to come
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" Big Power , Bold Colors " - the 2024 ' FatBook ' catalog Cover Bike by Gary Chipp and his team at Fat Baggers Inc ( FBI , Chariton , Iowa ) started out life as a 2018 FLXR Softail Low Rider . But Big Power ( a Trask Turbo kit ) and Bold Colors never ' get old ' - see page 58 ...
HardDrive 2024 Catalog