2014 Q2 Harley-Davidson Motorcycle Sales
Harley-Davidson released its second-quarter earning and motorcycle-sales report Tuesday. Worldwide, Harley dealers sold slightly more motorcycles than the same quarter of 2013, with 90,218 units sold compared to 90,193 in Q2 of 2013.
US Sales for the second quarter were down a bit, though, with 58,225 new Harley-Davidsons sold compared to 58,241 in Q2 of 2013.
The Motor Company attributes the negative US sales to “prolonged poor weather across parts of the U.S. and soft Sportster motorcycle sales ahead of the highly anticipated arrival of Street motorcycles in dealer showrooms.”
The numbers were slightly higher in International markets, where Harley sold 31,993 new motorcycles in the second quarter of 2014 compared to 31,952 in the same period of 2013. Harley reports that sales were up 7 percent in the EMEA Region and 1.5 percent in the Asia Pacific Region, and down 10.4 percent in the Latin America Region and 18 percent in Canada.
“U.S. retail Harley-Davidson sales fell short of our expectations in the second quarter,” said Keith Wandell, Harley-Davidson, Inc. Chairman, President and Chief Executive Officer.
“Because we are committed to managing supply in line with demand, we are reducing our full-year shipment plan and now expect shipment growth of approximately 3-1/2 to 5-1/2 percent over last year (The Company previously had forecast full-year shipment growth of approximately 7 to 9 percent).
“We believe the underlying demand fundamentals of the business remain intact. We continue to see a strong response to the new Rushmore models as well as great interest in the Harley-Davidson Street 750 and 500, which began to hit dealer showrooms in late June.”
As for the first six months of 2014, The Motor Company sold 147,633 new Harley-Davidson motorcycles worldwide, compared to 144,447 motorcycles in the year-ago period. Retail unit sales were up 1.1 percent in the U.S., 10.1 percent in the Asia Pacific Region and 7.5 percent in the EMEA Region, and down 2.1 percent in the Latin America Region and 13.5 percent in Canada, compared to the same period of 2013.
As for earnings, Harley says second-quarter 2014 diluted earnings per share of $1.62 grew 33.9 percent on higher motorcycle shipments and continued improvement in operating efficiencies, compared to the year-ago period. Second-quarter net income was $354.2 million on consolidated revenue of $2.00 billion, compared to net income of $271.7 million in the year-ago period on consolidated revenue of $1.79 billion.
Through six months, Harley-Davidson 2014 net income was $620.1 million on consolidated revenue of $3.73 billion, compared to six-month 2013 net income of $495.9 million on consolidated revenue of $3.37 billion. Six-month 2014 diluted earnings per share were $2.82, up 28.2 percent from EPS of $2.20 in the year-ago period, Harley reports.
“Harley-Davidson’s second-quarter results reflect the financial strength of the Company and brand, including the benefits of continuous improvement throughout our operation,” Wandell says.
“As a customer-led organization, our employees, dealers in 90 countries and suppliers are focused every day on providing outstanding products and experiences for customers around the world.”
