Arctic Cat and Polaris Sled Sales Soar

[Canuck]

There was a separate thread on the Polaris Demo. in Parry Sound last weekend, and as I recall it was well received by many.

Interesting article on the American Snowmobiler website - "Arctic Cat is reporting a 33% increase in its third quarter for snowmobile sales with overall sales up 16%, while their in-state competitor, Polaris, reports record sales in the fourth quarter. Total Polaris sales in the quarter were up 31% while snowmobile sales jumped 28%".

I still bleed blue, but have a feeling that next year's Arctic Cat sleds (to comply with EPA guidelines) will be worth a look.

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Minneapolis - Polaris Industries is reporting record sales, up 31%, for the fourth quarter, ending Dec. 31, with snowmobile sales up 28% for the quarter.

Polaris' net income was up 24% in the quarter and 46% for the full year. Income was $54.5 million for the fourth quarter and $147.1 million for the full year.

In addition, Polaris reported a record quarter for sales at $618.4 million up 31%, and $1.99 billion in yearly sales, up 27%. In addition, the company said it now has $393.9 million in cash, or cash equivalents on hand, an increase of 181% from a year earlier.

The upbeat report is quite a turnaround from last year when Polaris reported a sales decrease of 20% for the full year.

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Minneapolis - Arctic Cat Inc. says its sales increased 16% to $152 million in its third quarter, ended Dec. 31, with snowmobile sales jumping 33%.

Arctic Cat’s earnings also rose to $9.2 million, up 28% for the quarter with earnings of $22.6 million, up 51%, for its first nine months. Cat’s fiscal year ends March 31. Snowmobile sales were $77.8 million in the third quarter, up from $58.7 million in the prior year's quarter. The sales increase was fueled by North American dealer sales, snow conditions, and international distributor sales increase. Year-to-date snowmobile sales increased 15% to $186.5 million vs. $162.3 million in the period last year. This was led by higher international sales to distributors.

Factory inventory declined 27% to $77.2 million from $106.3 million, helping its cash position. Additionally, short-term investments rose to $107.1 million from $50.4 million.

Arctic Cat noted that it has no short- or long-term debt.

By sector, snowmobile sales were up 28% for the fourth quarter compared to the prior year at $104.1 million. For the year sales were up 5% to $188.9 million. Polaris attributed its stronger sales in the quarter to later sled shipments and heavy amounts of snowfall early in the season. It also said sales to Scandinavia were up 43%. It said dealer inventories also are lower now than a year ago.

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