Thor’s stock rises after profit falls sharply but beats expectations by wide margin

Shares of Thor Industries Inc.
THO,
-3.33%
rose 1.5% in premarket trading Tuesday, after the recreational vehicle company reported fiscal third-quarter profit that dropped sharply but was well above expectations, as strength in Europe helped cushion the drop in North America sales. Net income for the quarter to April 30 fell to $120.7 million, or $2.24 a share, from $348.1 million, or $6.32 a share, in the year-ago period. The FactSet consensus for earnings per share was $1.07. Sales dropped 37.1% to $2.93 billion, but were above the FactSet consensus of $2.81 billion, as North American Towable sales fell 57.4% to $1.12 billion and North American Motorized RV sales were down 24.4% to $795.9 million, while European RV sales increased 19.7% to $866.8 million. “Market conditions continue to be challenging as dealers and consumers face increasing pressures from the macro environment,” said Chief Executive Officer Bob Martin. For fiscal 2023, the company lifted its guidance range for EPS to $5.80 to $6.50 from $5.50 to $6.50 but trimmed its outlook for sales to $10.5 billion to $11.0 billion from $10.5 billion to $11.5 billion. The stock has gained 8.6% year to date through Monday, while the S&P 500
SPX,
-0.20%
has advanced 11.3%.