INDIANAPOLIS, Ind. — Allison Transmission Holdings, Inc. (NYSE: ALSN), the largest global provider of commercial duty fully-automatic transmissions, reported net sales on Feb. 19 for the fourth quarter of $617 million, a 5 percent decrease from the same period in 2018.
The decrease in net sales was principally driven by lower demand in the Global Off-Highway and Service Parts, Support Equipment & Other end markets that were partially offset by higher demand in the North America On-Highway end market.
Net Income for the quarter was $107 million compared to $147 million for the same period in 2018. Adjusted EBITDA, a non-GAAP financial measure, for the quarter was $216 million compared to $261 million for the same period in 2018.
Net Cash Provided by Operating Activities for the quarter was $202 million compared to $232 million for the same period in 2018. Adjusted Free Cash Flow, a non-GAAP financial measure, for the quarter was $121 million compared to $184 million for the same period in 2018.
David S. Graziosi, president and chief executive officer of Allison Transmission commented: “2019 was an important year for Allison Transmission. We successfully completed three acquisitions, broke ground on two state-of-the-art technology facilities and achieved meaningful market share gains in North America. Full-year 2019 results exceeded our guidance expectations, and both our North America and Outside North America On-Highway end markets concluded a third consecutive record revenue year.”
Graziosi continued, “I am further pleased to report that Allison’s established and well-defined approach to capital structure and allocation remains intact. During the fourth quarter, we settled $62 million of share repurchases, resulting in $393 million of total share repurchases for the year, or approximately 7 percent of our outstanding shares. Also during the quarter, we paid a dividend of $0.15 per share and completed an opportunistic repricing of our term loan due March 2026, illustrating our commitment to prudent balance sheet management through a low-cost, flexible and pre-payable debt structure with long-dated maturities, while simultaneously investing in our business and returning capital to shareholders.”
Fourth Quarter Highlights
North America On-Highway end market net sales were up 9 percent from the same period in 2018, principally driven by higher demand for Rugged Duty Series, Highway Series and Electric-Hybrid Propulsion models, led by the continued execution of our growth initiatives and associated market share gains, and down 11 percent on a sequential basis principally driven by lower demand for Rugged Duty Series, Highway Series and Pupil Transport/Shuttle Series models.
North America Off-Highway end market net sales were down $16 million from the same period in 2018 and down $5 million sequentially, in both cases principally driven by lower demand from hydraulic fracturing applications.
Defense end market net sales were up 17 percent from the same period in 2018, principally driven by higher Tracked vehicle demand and up 5 percent on a sequential basis, principally driven by higher Wheeled vehicle demand.
Outside North America On-Highway end market net sales were down 4 percent from the same period in 2018, principally driven by lower demand in Europe and Asia partially offset by higher demand in South America and down 9 percent sequentially, principally driven by lower demand in Europe.
Outside North America Off-Highway end market net sales were down $29 million from the same period in 2018 and down $6 million on a sequential basis, in both cases principally driven by lower demand in the energy, mining and construction sectors.
Service Parts, Support Equipment & Other end market net sales were down 9 percent from the same period in 2018, principally driven by lower demand for North America Off-Highway service parts and up 3 percent sequentially, principally driven by higher demand for North America parts.
Gross profit for the quarter was $298 million, a decrease of 12 percent from $338 million for the same period in 2018. Gross margin for the quarter was 48.3 percent, a decrease of 390 basis points from a gross margin of 52.2 percent for the same period in 2018.
The decrease in gross profit from the same period in 2018 was principally driven by lower net sales and unfavorable mix, partially offset by price increases on certain products and favorable material costs.
Selling, general and administrative expenses for the quarter were $92 million, an increase of $2 million from the same period in 2018. The increase was principally driven by increased commercial activities spending partially offset by lower 2019 product warranty expense.
Engineering—research and development expenses for the quarter were $47 million, an increase of $10 million from the same period in 2018. The increase was principally driven by increased product initiatives spending.
During the fourth quarter, we recorded an $8 million benefit related to a reduction of the liability for ongoing environmental remediation activities at our Indianapolis, Indiana manufacturing facilities.
Interest expense for the quarter was $33 million, an increase of $2 million from the same period in 2018. The increase was principally driven by higher interest rates related to long-term debt refinancing that extended maturities at fixed interest rates.
Net income for the quarter was $107 million, a decrease of $40 million from the same period in 2018. The decrease was principally driven by lower gross profit and increased product initiatives spending partially offset by an environmental remediation benefit.
Net cash provided by operating activities was $202 million, a decrease of $30 million from the same period in 2018. The decrease was principally driven by lower gross profit, increased cash interest expense and increased product initiatives spending, partially offset by lower operating working capital requirements and decreased cash income taxes.
Fourth Quarter Non-GAAP Financial Measures
Adjusted EBITDA for the quarter was $216 million, a decrease of $45 million from the same period in 2018. The decrease in Adjusted EBITDA was principally driven by lower gross profit and increased product initiatives spending.
Adjusted Free Cash Flow for the quarter was $121 million, a decrease of $63 million from the same period in 2018. The decrease was principally driven by $33 million of increased capital expenditures and $30 million of lower net cash provided by operating activities.
Full-Year 2020 Guidance
Allison expects 2020 net sales to be in the range of $2,375 to $2,475 million, Net Income in the range of $425 to $475 million, Adjusted EBITDA in the range of $855 to $915 million, Net Cash Provided by Operating Activities in the range of $600 to $640 million, Adjusted Free Cash Flow in the range of $430 to $480 million and cash income taxes in the range of $60 to $70 million.
Our 2020 net sales guidance reflects lower demand in the Global On-Highway and Global Off-Highway end markets, partially offset by increased demand in the Service Parts, Support Equipment & Other and Defense end markets and price increases on certain products.
Although we are not providing specific first quarter 2020 guidance, Allison does expect first-quarter net sales to be down from the same period in 2019, principally driven by lower demand expected in the Global On-Highway end markets.
Conference Call and Webcast
The company will host a conference call at 8:00 a.m. ET on Thursday, February 20 to discuss its fourth quarter and full-year 2019 results and full-year 2020 guidance. The dial-in number is 877-425-9470 and the international dial-in number is 201-389-0878. A live webcast of the conference call will also be available online at http://ir.allisontransmission.com.
For those who are unable to participate on the conference call, a replay will be available from 11:00 a.m. ET on February 20 until 11:59 p.m. ET on February 27. The replay dial-in number is 844-512-2921 and the international replay dial-in number is 412-317-6671. The replay passcode is 13698301.
About Allison Transmission
Allison Transmission (NYSE: ALSN) is the world’s largest manufacturer of fully automatic transmissions for medium- and heavy-duty commercial vehicles. Allison transmissions are used in a variety of applications, including refuse, construction, fire, distribution, bus, motorhomes, defense and energy. Founded in 1915, the company is headquartered in Indianapolis, Ind. With a market presence in more than 80 countries, Allison has regional headquarters in the Netherlands, China and Brazil, with manufacturing facilities in the U.S., Hungary and India. Allison also has approximately 1,400 independent distributor and dealer locations worldwide. www.allisontransmission.com
