Three of the four major North American snowmobile manufacturers recorded overall sales increases from the same timeframe last season, reflecting an overall trend in industry-wide sales.
According to its press release, Polaris Industries recorded a 12 percent increase in its overall year-to-year sales comparison, noting that its acquisition of Boat Holdings, LLC added $134 million of sales.
The company reported an overall net income of $96 million compared to $82 million in FY 2017. Its snowmobile segment sales represented $69 million compared to $144 million last year. However, snowmobile sales are expected to be more heavily weighted towards the fourth quarter due to the timing Snow Check pre-season orders.
The dedication of our Polaris team continued to drive growth,” said Polaris Industries CEO Scott Wine. “We are strategically and tactically committed to being a customer-centric, highly efficient growth company, and our investments demonstrate that commitment. Our goals do not eliminate or even diminish the serious challenges we face from tariffs, but they certainly increase our resolve to find acceptable solutions or offsets.”
Ski-Doo parent company Bomardier Recreational Products (BRP) reported a net income of $90.2 million, an increase of $20.2 million, and an overall revenue increase of 13.7 percent.
“We posted another record quarter with sustained demand for our products. Consumer demand for BRP’s powersports lineup was up by more than 25 percent in North America,” said BRP President and CEO José Boisjoli. “The fundamentals of our business are robust, and are thus well positioned to be very competitive despite the current potential headwinds caused by current market inflationary pressure.”
Remaining profitable despite its reduced snowmobile lineup for this seasson, Yamaha reported an overall net sales increase of 2.3 percent, while also raising operating income by 4.4 percent.
Meanwhile, Arctic Cat owner Textron continued to struggle with the financial realities of its acquisition of the company in March of 2017. Reported revenues at Textron Aviation were down 2 percent due to lower volume, reflecting an overall trend. However, Textron CEO remained optimistic of the future, saying in an earnings report conference call, “We’ve got great feedback from customers, on the performance side we don’t have a product problem. We’re working on it as we go forward, but I think the progress on what the product is and how the product is performing we’re very pleased with.”
Overall snowmobile sales saw an industry-wide increase last year, up 5.8 percent for the 2018 selling season compared to the 2017 selling season, which saw sales decline 6.5 percent due to weather conditions and economic instability.
Editor’s Note: Every issue of Snow Goer magazine includes in-depth sled reports and comparisons, aftermarket gear and accessories reviews, riding destination articles, do-it-yourself repair information, snowmobile technology and more! Subscribe to Snow Goer now to receive issues delivered to your door 6 times per year for a low cost.