Terex Corporation’s (TEX Quick QuoteTEX - Free Report) third-quarter 2018 adjusted earnings surged 36% year over year to 68 cents per share but fell short of the Zacks Consensus Estimate of 75 cents per share by a margin of 9%.

 

Including one-time items, Terex posted earnings of 51 cents per share in the quarter compared with 63 cents reported in the year-ago quarter.

 

 

Revenues in the quarter improved 11% year over year to $1,229 million from $1,111 million recorded in the prior-year quarter. Revenues fell short of the Zacks Consensus Estimate of $1,280 million. Backlog rose by 41% in the reported quarter, aided by an increase of 72% in Material Processing (“MP”) segment and  rise of 50% in Aerial Work Platforms (“AWP”) segment.

 

 

 

 

Selling, general and administrative expenses increased 5% year over year to $161 million. Terex reported an operating income of $72 million compared with $66 million in the year-ago quarter, a rise of 9%. Operating margin remained flat at 5.9%.

 

 

The Aerial Work Platforms (“AWP”) segment reported revenues of $634 million in the third quarter, up 14% from $557 million in the prior-year quarter. Operating income improved 27% to $73 million from $58 million in the prior-year quarter.

 

Revenues from the Crane segment dipped 0.2% to $301 million from the year-ago quarter. The segment reported an operating loss of $14 million compared with the loss of $0.3 million in the prior-year quarter.

 

The Material Processing (“MP”) segment’s revenues were $295 million, up 14% year over year. The segment reported an operating income of $28.5 million, flat year over year.

 

 

Terex had cash and cash equivalents of $326 million at the end of third-quarter 2018 compared with $627 million at the end of 2017. The company used $19.6 million of cash in operations in the nine-month period ended Sep 30, 2018 compared with cash outflow of $56.2 million in the prior-year comparable period. Long-term debt was $1,128 million as of Sep 30, 2018, compared with $980 million as of Dec 31, 2017.

 

 

Terex lowered adjusted EPS guidance for 2018 to $2.60-$2.70 from the previous guidance of $2.80-$3.00 due to lower-than expected third-quarter results. Further, higher input costs, including tariffs, and foreign exchange headwinds led to the trimmed guidance. Moreover, the company updated production plans for the Cranes segment which was affected by supply chain challenges in the third quarter of 2018. Nevertheless, demand for Terex’s products remain strong as evident from the growth in sales, bookings, and backlog noted in the third quarter.

 

 

The shares of Terex have plunged 28% over the past year, compared with the industry’s decline of 7%.

 

The company currently carries a Zacks Rank #5 (Strong Sell).

 

 

Better-ranked stocks in the same sector include Enersys (ENS Quick QuoteENS - Free Report) , Flowserve Corporation (FLS Quick QuoteFLS - Free Report) and RBC Bearings Incorporated . While Enersys sports a Zacks Rank #1 (Strong Buy), Flowserve and RBC Bearings carry a Zacks Rank #2 (Buy). You can see the complete list of today’s Zacks #1 Rank stocks here.

 

Enersys has a long-term earnings growth rate of 10%. Shares of the company have rallied 29% in a year.

 

Flowserve has a long-term earnings growth rate of 17%. Its shares have rallied around 26% in the past year.

 

RBC Bearings has a long-term earnings growth rate of 6%. Its shares have rallied around 31% in the past year.

 

 

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