LCI Industries, parent company of Lippert, said its net sales were slightly off in the third quarter as compared to a year ago.
The company had $1.13 billion in sales, compared with the $1.16 billion in the third quarter of last year. Net income in the quarter was $61.4 million compared with $63.4 million last year.
“Our results continue to demonstrate the effectiveness of our diversification strategy, which has positioned Lippert to maintain strong performance during a downturn in RV demand,” said Jason Lippert, LCI Industries president and CEO. “During the third quarter, we delivered growth in adjacent markets and leveraged our flexible cost structure to support profitability, as the RV industry adjusts to softened consumer demand and macroeconomic uncertainty.”
For the first nine months of the year, LCI has $4.3 billion in sales, compared with $3.3 billion for the first three quarters of last year. Net income for this year so far is $423 million, compared with the $205 million for that period.
“The operational improvements we’ve implemented over the last several years have enabled us to nimbly balance capacity while maintaining our product quality, as wholesale RV production is expected to remain tempered in the near-term,” Lippert said. “Other key end markets, including marine, motorhomes, manufactured housing, power sports, and the RV aftermarket continued to perform well, helping our overall business more effectively than if it was solely concentrated in the RV market. We remain confident in the underlying secular trends fueling popularity in the outdoor lifestyle and will keep investing in innovation throughout our portfolio to capture demand for technologically sophisticated products. With our strong, cohesive culture guided by our experienced leadership team, we believe we are well-positioned to manage through a challenging economic environment to advance our business and drive long-term shareholder value.”
In the last 12 months LCI said 56% of its sales went to the North American OEM companies. In Q3, it had net sales to OEMs of $541.2 million, down $85.3 million – or 14% – over the same period a year ago, due to a nearly 40% decline in industry wholesale shipments.
