Wabash National Profit Dips

The company says earnings were impacted in part by the acquisition of Goshen-based Supreme Industries.

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Lafayette-based Wabash National Corp. (NYSE: WNC) is reporting third quarter net income of $18.9 million, compared to $33.4 million during the same quarter the previous year. Chief Executive Officer Dick Giromini says, while the earnings are not up to "the lofty standards that we have become accustomed to in the past couple years," he is encouraged by recent market trends.

The company says earnings were impacted in part by the acquisition of Goshen-based Supreme Industries Inc., which had a $364 million equity value. That deal was completed last month. When the acquisition was announced, Wabash National said the deal would create an annual savings of $20 million by 2021.

Wabash National reported third quarter net sales of $425 million, which is an 8 percent decrease compared to the third quarter of 2016. Despite the dip, Giromini says the company delivered a "historically solid performance" in the third quarter, and the company remains "excited about what next year will bring."

Giromini says pick-up delays because of hurricanes, a tighter labor market and ongoing investment in the company’s molded structural composites startup also weighed on third quarter performance. He says the company has a backlog totaling $670 million, so "we believe we are in a solid position as the 2018 order season enters its strongest period."