Is Harley-Davidson the Next Casualty?

[Ganja Ninja]

Question: Can Harley-Davidson survive the world economic disaster?

The company itself paints a bleak picture of its present and future. To quote from an October 15 corporate press release:

Worldwide retail sales of new Harley-Davidson motorcycles declined 21.3 percent in the third quarter compared to last year's third quarter, an improvement from the 30.1 percent decline in this year's second quarter. An 84.1 percent decline in net income and an 84.5 percent decline in diluted earnings per share from the year-ago quarter reflected lower motorcycle shipments and the effects of the economy on retail and wholesale loan performance at Harley-Davidson Financial Services.

Read more at: http://www.huffingtonpost.com/steve-parker/is-harley-davidson-the-ne_b_326781.html

[JustABozoOnThisBus]

1. Maybe this year is normal

Last year motorcycle sales were booming, with gasoline above $4 a gallon. People on the fence went ahead and bought. So how are sales compared to the year before last, or the previous one? Those would probably be more valid comparisons.

Dropping Buell was a big change, hopefully it will help the company. I wonder if the v-rod is next on the chopping block.

[Ganja Ninja]

2. I don't think their troubles have anything to do with their product.

I think its got more to do with bad management. And what I don't understand is how they can go from several good years to the brink of bankruptcy in one bad year. A little over a year ago they were the most profitable motorcycle company in the world.

[david13]

3. They are in fair shape for as poor as the economy is at this time.

However, their products appeal to a crowd that is doing nothing but getting older. And the younger riders are going elsewhere.
So their management is eventually going to run them into the ground, based on their product line.
Across the board other bikes outperform and outlast the Harley's.
And have better and more advanced technology, far more power, less weight, lower cost. They are doomed, but not at this moment.
dc