QUINCY, Ill.— Titan International Inc.'s third-quarter net earnings plummeted 58.7 percent to $8.1 million despite a 22.9 percent surge in sales to $497.5 million, compared with the year-ago period.
Sales increased 35 percent from the addition of recently acquired entities, including $128.9 million at Titan Europe, Titan said, noting that overall sales volume was on par with last year.
The increase in net sales in the quarter was partially offset by a price/mix reduction, which resulted largely from decreased raw material prices that generally were passed on to customers. That, according to the Quincy-based company, lowered sales about 5 percent; weakened demand in the earthmoving/construction market, contributing to a 4 percent drop in sales volume; and unfavorable currency translation, which decreased sales by about 3 percent.
For the first nine months that ended Sept. 30, Titan's net income fell 48.7 percent to $50.8 million, while operating income fell 42.1 percent to $101.8 million as sales increased 25.8 percent to $1.67 billion.
The increase in year-to-date sales in the first nine months was offset by the price/mix reduction resulting largely from lower raw material prices passed on to customers, lowering sales about 7 percent, and an unfavorable currency translation which decrease sales 2 percent.