Manitowoc Company, Inc. Q4 2008 Earnings Call Transcript

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2009-01-29 16:02:17.0

Tags: Call Transcript, Earnings, Pricing Strategy, UBS AG, Pricing, Marketing Research, Marketing, Seeking Alpha, Manitowoc Co. Inc.

Question-and-Answer Session

Operator

(Operator instructions) And we’ll take our first question from Henry Kirn with UBS. Please go ahead, sir.

Henry Kirn – UBS

Good morning, guys.

Glen Tellock

Good morning

Carl Laurino

Hi, Henry.

Steven Khail

Good morning.

Henry Kirn – UBS

Can you talk a little bit about pricing in the crane market and maybe dovetailing with that what you’re seeing in the used market, if that’s providing any pressure to new pricing?

Glen Tellock

Well, Henry, I think when you look at some of the prices in the used side they still have held relatively okay. I think you’re seeking just where our weakness is on the smaller capacity cranes. That’s what you’re going to see on the lower capacity units and a good benchmark of that in the United States may be the auction here in Orlando, the Ritchie Brothers auction here in February. But I would say the pricing for our products there were some things that we didn’t do in the middle of last year where our customers recognized our commitment to them. We have gone out with pricing this year and it is an issue that I think some people are looking at and I think people want to take that opportunity to go back but I can tell you when you look at the material cost input that certainly hasn’t come down in any respect, so I think the pricing that we have is certainly an opportunity for us to maintain that pricing that we didn’t let out last year.

Henry Kirn – UBS

Okay, and on your cost base, how long do you think it’ll take to right size the business? I’m thinking here as your margins progress through the year.

Glen Tellock

I think some of these actions were taken in the latter part of 2008 and many of them are taking part as we speak and then obviously within the fist quarter or first couple of months of 2009. Carl do you want to talk about the ?

Carl Laurino

Yes. I would say that there’s certainly some benefit that we’ve already seen from some of the actions we did take in 2008 to Glen’s point. I would say the biggest pressure because of the inventory runoff issue and just the dynamic in the supply and pricing. You know we see the biggest pressure certainly on our margins in the fist quarter of this year, so I think that that’s in place.

 

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