Wednesday October 21, 11:25 PM
UPDATE 2-Terex posts wider-than-expected loss
CHICAGO, Oct 21 (Reuters) - Terex Corp, the world's No. 3 maker of heavy earth-moving equipment, reported a wider-than-expected third-quarter loss on Wednesday and warned that weak customer demand made it 'unlikely' it would post a profit in the fourth quarter.
Shares fell to $21.50 from their close of $23.59 on the New York Stock Exchange in extended trade.
The company said it was beginning to see signs that certain markets have stabilized and even a few signs that point to growth, echoing upbeat comments earlier this week from Caterpillar Inc (NYSE: CAT - news) , the world's No. 1 maker of earth-moving equipment.
The downturn in the housing market, which has spread to commercial building, has been hard on Terex and its rivals.
After peaking at $35.1 billion in 2006, the combined output of the sector is expected to fall to $17.5 billion this year, according to a recent study by IHS Global Insight. Manufacturers have responded by slashing their workforces and shuttering facilities. Since 2006, employment in the industry has fallen 59 percent.
Terex reported a third-quarter loss of $103.1 million, or 95 cents a share, compared with a profit of $93.8 million, or 96 cents a share, last year.
Sales fell 51.2 percent to $1.23 billion.
Analysts, on average, expected a loss of 34 cents a share on sales of $1.31 billion, according to Thomson Reuters I/B/E/S.
During the quarter, Terex booked after-tax charges of 18 cents a share associated with its ongoing restructuring. While the company said customer sentiment and inquiries gave it confidence the market was finally turning, it said it was continuing to focus on cost cutting and cash preservation.
'We are continuing to aggressively reduce costs as our business will be roughly half the size in terms of net sales than it was in 2008,' Ron DeFeo, the company's chairman and chief executive said in a statement.
'This was a disappointing quarter but we feel that we are turning the corner to better performance.'
Sales of aerial work platforms were down 66.5 percent during the quarter, construction equipment sales fell 55.9 percent, mining equipment sales fell 48.8 and crane sales dropped 38.3 percent.
(Reporting by James B. Kelleher; Editing Bernard Orr) Keywords: TEREX/
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