Thor Industries (THO) Q1 Earnings Top Estimates, Surge Y/Y

Thor Industries Inc. (NYSE:THO) reported first-quarter (ended Oct 31, 2016) fiscal 2017 earnings of $1.49 per share that surpassed the Zacks Consensus Estimate of $1.23. Earnings also surged 55.2% from 96 cents per share recorded in the first quarter of fiscal 2016. Net income from continuing operations increased 55.9% to $78.7 million from $50.5 million in the prior-year quarter.

Revenues rose 65.8% year over year to $1.71 billion, surpassing the Zacks Consensus Estimate of $1.52 billion. The year-over-year improvement was driven by higher sales of towable and motorized RVs, along with benefits from the Jayco’s acquisition.

Gross profit improved 55.5% to $236.8 million from $152.2 million in the first quarter of fiscal 2016. Gross profit margin was 13.9% compared to 14.8% in the year-ago quarter.

Segment Results

Sales of Towable RVs went up 62.6% year over year to $1.21 billion, driven by benefits from Jayco’s acquisition and rising sales of lower-priced travel trailers. Pre-tax income increased 49% to $94.2 million from $63.2 million in the prior-year quarter, backed by higher sales, and modest selling general and administrative expense along with gains from the sale of property. This was partially offset by increased amortization expense and purchase accounting costs.

Revenues from Motorized RVs surged 83.8% to $461.5 million from $251.1 million in the year-ago quarter. The upside was driven by strong sales of moderately priced Gas Class A and Class C motorhomes, along with the benefits from Jayco’s acquisition. Pre-tax income from the segment increased 33.6% to $28.9 million from $21.7 million a year ago.

Financial Position

Thor Industries had cash and cash equivalents of $161.7 million as of Oct 31, 2016, down from $179.3 million as of Oct 31, 2015.

Zacks Rank

Thor Industries currently holds a Zacks Rank #2 (Buy).

Other well-ranked companies in the auto space include Allison Transmission Holdings, Inc. (NYSE:ALSN) , America's Car-Mart Inc. (NASDAQ:CRMT) and Rush Enterprises, Inc. (NASDAQ:RUSHA) .

Both Allison Transmission and America's Car-Mart sport a Zacks Rank #1 (Strong Buy). You can see the complete list of today’s Zacks #1 Rank stocks here.

Allison Transmission has a long-term growth rate of 11%.

America's Car-Mart has a long-term growth rate of 45.50%.

Rush Enterprises, carrying a Zacks Rank #2 (Buy), has a long-term expected growth rate of 15%.

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