Cooper Tire & Rubber Company Reports Second Quarter 2017 Results Down

Cooper Tire & Rubber Company (NYSE: CTB) has reported second quarter 2017 net income of $45 million, or diluted earnings per share of $0.85, compared with $71 million, or $1.27 per share, last year.

Second Quarter Highlights:

• Consolidated unit volume decreased 0.5 percent compared with a year ago, with strong growth in the International segment t hat was offset by lower volume in North America.
• Net sales decreased 2.6 percent to $721 million.
• Operating profit was $75 million, or 10.4 percent of net sales, which is a decrease of $35 million from the prior year, reflecting a volatile raw material cost, product pricing, and promotional market environment.
• The company’s raw material index increased 20.7 percent from the second quarter of 2016, with raw material costs increasing by $60 million from the prior year.
• The company repurchased nearly $21 million of its common stock during the quarter at an average price of $36.55 per share. Average shares outstanding have decreased 4.3 percent from the second quarter of 2016.

According to company President & Chief Executive Officer Brad Hughes, “The tire industry continues to face turbulence in the U.S. market in the form of raw material cost variability, weak trends in retail sell-out of tires to consumers, elevated inventory in the channels and a fluid pricing and promotional landscape. As we continued to respond to these challenges and remained market facing with pricing and promotions, Cooper improved volumes in the U.S. from the first quarter to the second quarter. Importantly, we ended the quarter on a strong note, growing U.S. volume over the prior year and outperforming the industry in June. Cooper also achieved strong year-over-year second quarter unit volume increases in Latin America and Asia, as well as in truck and bus radial (TBR) tires.”

Category: General Update, Wheels & Tires