Dave Cotteleer , newly appointed as VP U . S Market
Harley prices had started to recover , and that YTD used bike sales were up for the YTD through August and overall pricing was up for the third quarter . The company puts its market share gains down to strong demand for the new cruisers and equipping new motorcycle rentals partner EagleRider with its initial fleet of new bikes . Inventory management continues to be managed closely . The company cites considerably constrained availability in Q3 , with dealer inventory down by 12,200 units vs . the prior year . Total motorcycle shipments of 41,662 for the quarter ( -14.3 percent ) took the YTD figure to 194,300 ( -11.6 percent ), of which 41.4 percent (+ 0.7 percent ) were Tourers , 34.8 percent were Cruisers ( -0.9 percent ) and 23.8 percent were Street and Sportster models (+ 0.2 percent ). However , in Q3 Tourers declined in model mix terms to 35.2 percent ( - 12.7 percent ), with Cruisers up by + 12.7 percent to 41.5 percent of shipments . CFO John Olin said that “ Q3 shipments were down 6,949 motorcycle year on year as we
aggressively managed supply in line with demand ” and that that left Harley “ within guidance range of 39,000 to 44,000 motorcycles “ for the quarter . He noted that 52.8 percent of Q3 shipments were , in fact , international and that overall the Q3 mix has been slewed to Cruisers to reflect the MY 2018 launch . The company continues to expect fullyear 2017 operating margin to be down approximately 1 percentage point compared to 2016 , and 2017 capital expenditures to be $ 200 million to $ 220 million . Cash and marketable securities totaled $ 683.1 million at the end of the third quarter , compared to $ 795.3 million a year ago . During the first nine months of 2017 , Harley-Davidson generated $ 949.1 million of cash from operating activities compared to $ 927.8 million for the first nine months of 2016 . The company paid a cash dividend of $ 0.365 per share for the third quarter of 2017 , and a cumulative total of $ 1.095 per share for the first nine months of 2017 . On a discretionary basis , the company repurchased 4.5 million shares of its common stock during the third quarter of 2017 for $ 222 million . In the third quarter of 2017 , there were 170.7 million weighted-average diluted common shares outstanding , compared to 179.3 million shares in the same period a year ago . At the end of the period , 10.6 million shares remained on a board-approved share repurchase authorization . Third quarter 2017 diluted EPS decreased to $ 0.40 from $ 0.64 in the third quarter of 2016 . Third quarter net income was $ 68.2 million on consolidated revenue of $ 1.15 billion versus net income of $ 114.1 million on consolidated revenue of $ 1.27 billion in the third quarter of 2016 . Through nine months , Harley- Davidson 2017 diluted EPS was $ 2.95 , down 16.9 percent from $ 3.55 in the
Harley-Davidson Chairman and CEO Matt Levatich was one of the two Keynote speakers at the recent AIMExpo at Columbus , Ohio , ( Scott Wine , CEO of Polaris , being the other ) and , pointing to the investment that Harley is making to train two million new riders , called on the industry to unite to promote the two-wheel leisure option . He said that our market ' s competitors are as much the social media , content channels and games that ' Millennials ' and ' Centennials ' are exposed to on their screens , as well as any other outdoor leisure option , or , like for any other single motorcycle maker , the competitive offerings from other manufacturers . Levatich , quite rightly , pointed to the experiential opportunities of riding as being our primary USP year-ago period . Harley-Davidson 2017 net income was $ 513.4 million on consolidated revenue of $ 4.42 billion compared to nine-month 2016 net income of $ 645.0 million on consolidated revenue of $ 4.89 billion . For the first nine months , worldwide retail motorcycle sales were down 6.1 percent compared to the same period in 2016 .
Kumbier appointed COO
Michelle Kumbier has been appointed Chief Operating Officer of Harley-Davidson Motor Company with “ responsibility for planning and delivering the company ’ s global business results .” Effective immediately , Kumbier will have oversight of the company ’ s U . S . and international markets in addition to her current responsibilities leading product and operations . Kumbier joined Harley in 1997 in operations purchasing , and has since taken on roles with increasing responsibility in purchasing , strategic planning , new business development and parts & accessories . She most recently served as Senior Vice President , Motor Company Product & Operations , leading a team of more than 4,500 employees worldwide . Domestic U . S . Managing Director Mike Kennedy and Sean Cummings , Senior VP Global Demand , have left the company .
HARLEY
BRIEFS
Rick ’ s Motorcycles of Baden-Baden hosted its latest ‘ Rick ’ s Harley Days ’ open-house weekend at the end of September . In addition to showing the new Softails , hosting ride-outs , demo rides and all the usual features of the popular annual event , Rick ’ s , one of Europe ’ s largest aftermarket parts and accessories manufacturers , threw open the doors of its CNC machinery equipped manufacturing halls where their noted custom bikes and wheels programs are built and made .
In Switzerland Harley took 3rd spot in motorcycle market share terms for the first nine months of 2017 , selling 2,675 units ( a tad down on Jan-Sept 2017 ) behind Yamaha and BMW , but ahead of Kawasaki , Honda , Triumph , KTM , Ducati , Suzuki , Aprilia and Indian Motorcycle ( 294 units in what , in European terms , is their Head Office home market ). Harley ’ s top-seller there was the XL 1200 X Forty- Eight ( 270 units ), followed by the Breakout ( 231 units ).
In Austria Harley has dropped to 7th spot in motorcycle market share terms ( Jan-Sept 2017 , from 6th in 2016 ), selling 923 units YTD ; their top-seller there was the XL 1200 X , followed by the XL 1200 X , FLHXS and FXDB .
In an Australian total market that is down by -7.8 percent ( 73,141 units ) for the period January to September 2017 , Harley are in fourth spot in market share terms behind Honda , Yamaha and Kawasaki , having sold 6,526 units YTD for an 8.9 % share . However , in the road bike market ( the largest motorcycle sector in Australia , worth 40.5 percent of the overall market there / 29,625 units YTD - net of scooters , small cc bikes and off-road units etc ), Harley is top dog , ahead of Honda and Yamaha ; its topseller in Australia is the FXSB , followed by the XG500 .
The sectors of the Brammo electric vehicle business that were not bought by Polaris five years ago , which includes the ‘ Empulse RR ’ e- bike of IOM and Pikes Peak derring do fame , has been bought by Diesel engine manufacturer Cummins . What has this to do with Harley ? Cummins ’ CEO and Chairman Tom Lineberger is a non-executive Director on the board of Harley-Davidson . With ex- CEO Keith Wandell still engaged to work his magic at previously struggling battery maker Exide , are we witnessing the emergence of a Bar & Shield ‘ E-Nostra ’ as the production of Project Livewire ( hopefully ) draws ever nearer ? www . AMDchampionship . com AMERICAN MOTORCYCLE DEALER - NOVEMBER 2017 7