QUINCY, Ill.—Titan International Inc. reported operating losses for both the quarter and nine-month period ended Sept. 30, on double-digit sales declines for both periods.
Titan suffered an operating loss of $14.5 million for the third quarter of 2015 compared with a loss of $2.5 million in 2014. Through the first nine months of the year, the loss from operations was $6.1 million, compared with a loss of $31.7 million the year prior.
When adjusted to remove the asset impairment and inventory write-down that occurred in the second quarter of 2014, the income from operations for the nine-month period was $3.1 million, Titan said.
The company posteda net losses of $37.6 million for the quarter and $34.4 million for the nine-month period.
Net sales for the nine months ended Sept. 30 plummeted 28 percent to $1.09 billion, compared with the same period in 2014. However, gross profit for the period rose slightly to $120 million from $116.4 million the year prior.
Titan cited a cyclical downturn in the mining and ag markets for these declines, with reduced farm incomes resulting in lower demand for new equipment, primarily high-horsepower ag equipment. Competitive pressures and lower raw material prices—particularly in tire manufacturing—also had a negative impact on sales.
Titan said demand for its products was further impacted by inventory reduction efforts at both OEMs and their dealers. These decreases, the tire maker said, were offset partially by stable demand for products in the construction industry. Unfavorable currency translation decreased sales for the nine-month period by 10 percent.
“The third quarter for our end markets was worse than anyone forecasted,” said Titan CEO and Chairman Maurice Taylor. “This was consistent with our large customers and competitors....”
“While unfortunate, we continue to make the difficult decisions to reduce headcount as production continues to slow,” he added. ”In addition to our focus on reducing manufacturing costs, we are exploring wheel and tire designs to both reduce cost and improve performance.”