SECURITIES AND EXCHANGE COMMISSION
Washington, D.C. 20549
_________________
FORM 8-K
CURRENT REPORT
Pursuant to Section 13
or 15(d) of
the Securities Exchange Act of 1934
_________________
| Date of Report | ||
| (Date of earliest | ||
| event reported): | February 1, 2008 |
| Oshkosh Truck Corporation |
| (Exact name of registrant as specified in its charter) |
| Wisconsin |
1-31371 |
39-0520270 |
| (State or other | (Commission File | (IRS Employer |
| jurisdiction of | Number) | Identification No.) |
| incorporation) |
| P.O. Box 2566, Oshkosh, Wisconsin 54903 |
| (Address of principal executive offices, including zip code) |
(920) 235-9151 |
| (Registrant’s telephone number) |
Check the appropriate box below if the Form 8-K filing is intended to simultaneously satisfy the filing obligation of the registrant under any of the following provisions:
| [ ] | Written communications pursuant to Rule 425 under the Securities Act (17 CFR 230.425) |
| [ ] | Soliciting material pursuant to Rule 14a-12 under the Exchange Act (17 CFR 240.14a-12) |
| [ ] | Pre-commencement communications pursuant to Rule 14d-2(b) under the Exchange Act (17 CFR 240.14d-2(b)) |
| [ ] | Pre-commencement communications pursuant to Rule 13e-4(c) under the Exchange Act (17 CFR 240.13e-4(c)) |
| Item 2.02. | Results of Operations and Financial Condition. |
On February 1, 2008, Oshkosh Truck Corporation (the “Company”) issued a press release (the “Press Release”) announcing its earnings for the first quarter ended December 31, 2007 and its revised outlook for fiscal 2008. A copy of such press release is furnished as Exhibit 99.1 and is incorporated by reference herein.
On February 1, 2008, the Company held a conference call in connection with the Company’s announcement of its earnings for the first quarter ended December 31, 2007 and its revised outlook for fiscal 2008. A copy of the script (the “Script”) for such conference call is furnished as Exhibit 99.2 and is incorporated by reference herein. An audio replay of such conference call and the related question and answer session will be available for at least twelve months on the Company’s website at www.oshkoshtruckcorporation.com.
The information, including, without limitation, all forward-looking statements, contained in the Press Release, the Script and related slide presentation on the Company’s website (the “Slide Presentation”) or provided in the conference call and related question and answer session speaks only as of February 1, 2008. The Company has adopted a policy that if the Company makes a determination that it expects the Company’s earnings per share for future periods for which projections are contained in the Press Release, the Script and the Slide Presentation or provided in the conference call and related question and answer session to be lower than those projections, then the Company will publicly disseminate that fact. The Company’s policy also provides that if the Company makes a determination that it expects the Company’s earnings per share for future periods to be at or above the projections contained in the Press Release, the Script and the Slide Presentation or provided in the conference call and related question and answer session, then the Company does not intend to publicly disseminate that fact. Except as set forth above, the Company assumes no obligation, and disclaims any obligation, to update information contained in the Press Release, the Script and the Slide Presentation or provided in the conference call and related question and answer session. Investors should be aware that the Company may not update such information until the Company’s next quarterly earnings conference call, if at all.
The Press Release, the Script and the Slide Presentation contain, and representatives of the Company made, during the conference call and the related question and answer session, statements that the Company believes to be “forward-looking statements” within the meaning of the Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995. All statements other than statements of historical fact included in the Press Release, the Script and the Slide Presentation or made during the conference call and related question and answer session, including, without limitation, statements regarding the Company’s future financial position, business strategy, targets, projected sales, costs, earnings, capital expenditures, debt levels and cash flows, and plans and objectives of management for future operations, are forward-looking statements. In addition, forward-looking statements generally can be identified by the use of forward-looking terminology such as “may,” “will,” “expect,” “intend,” “estimate,” “anticipate,” “believe,” “should,” “project” or “plan,” or the negative thereof or variations thereon or similar terminology. The Company cannot provide any assurance that such expectations will prove to have been correct. Important factors that could cause actual results to differ materially from the Company’s expectations include, without limitation, those set forth under the captions “Accuracy of Assumptions” and “Risk Factors” below. Additional information concerning factors that could cause actual results to differ materially from those in the forward-looking statements is contained from time to time in the Company’s filings with the Securities and Exchange Commission.
In this Current Report on Form 8-K, “we,” “us” or “our” refers to Oshkosh Truck Corporation.
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The expectations reflected in the forward-looking statements, in particular those with respect to projected sales, costs, earnings, capital expenditures, debt levels and cash flows, are based in part on certain assumptions we make, some of which are referred to in, or as part of, the forward-looking statements. These assumptions include, without limitation, our ability to integrate the acquired JLG Industries, Inc. (“JLG”) business; our ability to turn around the Geesink Norba Group, our European refuse collection vehicle business, sufficiently to support its current valuation resulting in no impairment charges; our estimates for the level of concrete placement activity, housing starts, non-residential construction spending and mortgage rates; the performance of the U.S. and European economies generally, each of which could move into recession; our expectations as to timing of receipt of sales orders and payments and execution and funding of defense contracts; our ability to achieve cost reductions and operating efficiencies, in particular at JLG, McNeilus, the Geesink Norba Group and Medtec; the availability of defense truck carcasses for remanufacturing; the anticipated level of production and margins associated with the Family of Heavy Tactical Vehicles contract, the Indefinite Demand/Indefinite Quantity truck remanufacturing contract, the Medium Tactical Vehicle Replacement follow-on contract, the Logistics Vehicle System Replacement contract and international defense truck contracts; our ability to produce defense trucks at increased levels in fiscal 2008; our estimates for capital expenditures of rental and construction companies for JLG’s products, of municipalities for fire & emergency and refuse collection vehicles, of airports for aircraft rescue and snow removal products and of large commercial waste haulers generally and with us; federal funding levels for U.S. Department of Homeland Security and spending by governmental entities on homeland security apparatus; our estimates of the impact of changing fuel prices and credit availability on capital spending of towing operators; our planned spending on product development and bid and proposal activities with respect to defense truck procurement competitions and the outcome of such competitions; the expected level of commercial “package” body and purchased chassis sales compared to “body only” sales; anticipated levels of capital expenditures by us; our estimates for costs relating to litigation, product warranty, product liability, insurance, stock options, performance share awards, bad debts, personnel and raw materials; our estimates for debt levels, interest rates, foreign exchange rates, working capital needs and effective tax rates; and that we do not complete any acquisitions in the short term. We cannot provide any assurance that the assumptions referred to in the forward-looking statements or otherwise are accurate or will prove to have been correct. Any assumptions that are inaccurate or do not prove to be correct could have a material adverse effect on our ability to achieve the results that the forward-looking statements contemplate.
A decline in overall customer demand in our cyclical access equipment, commercial and fire & emergency markets could have a material adverse effect on our operating performance. The access equipment market that JLG operates in is highly cyclical and impacted by the strength of the economy generally, by prevailing mortgage and other interest rates, by residential and non-residential construction spending and by other factors. The ready-mix concrete market that we serve is highly cyclical and impacted by the strength of the economy generally, by prevailing mortgage and other interest rates, by the number of housing starts and by other factors that may have an effect on the level of concrete placement activity, either regionally or nationally. Domestic and European refuse collection vehicle markets are also highly cyclical and impacted by the strength of the economy generally and municipal tax receipts. Fire & emergency markets are modestly cyclical and are impacted by the economy generally and municipal tax receipts. Concrete mixer and access equipment sales also are seasonal with the majority of such sales occurring in the spring and summer months, which constitute the traditional construction season.
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The U.S. economy is experiencing a downturn, which has negatively impacted a number of markets in which we participate, including the concrete mixer and telehandler markets. These conditions have negatively impacted our sales volumes in the U.S. for concrete mixers, telehandlers and certain other products. U.S. housing starts were weak in fiscal 2007 and the first quarter of fiscal 2008 causing lower demand for our concrete mixers and telehandlers in the U.S., and we do not expect housing starts to improve until calendar 2009. We also expect U.S. non-residential construction spending to weaken by mid fiscal 2008 for two to three quarters and then recover in fiscal 2009, which may cause weakness in other markets of ours, including the aerial work platform market. In addition, customers of ours such as municipalities have been reducing their expenditures for fire & emergency equipment in anticipation of lower tax revenues. The towing and recovery equipment market is also being negatively impacted by the U.S. economy. We cannot provide any assurance that this downturn will not continue or become more severe, and the U.S. economy may be entering a recession. If these markets face further downturns, then there could be a material adverse effect on our net sales, financial condition, profitability and/or cash flows.
Furthermore, our commercial and fire & emergency businesses saw an increase in sales in fiscal 2006 and the first half of fiscal 2007 as customers pre-purchased truck chassis in anticipation of changes in diesel engine emissions standards effective January 1, 2007. As a result of this, we experienced weak demand in our fire & emergency and commercial markets in the first quarter of fiscal 2008 and we expect this to continue throughout fiscal 2008 in our commercial markets and to a lesser extent in our fire & emergency markets.
Additionally, the high levels of sales in our defense business in recent years have been due in significant part to demand for defense trucks, replacement parts and services and truck remanufacturing arising from the conflict in Iraq. Events such as this are unplanned, and we cannot predict how long this conflict will last or the demand for our products that will arise out of such an event. Accordingly, we cannot provide any assurance that the increased defense business as a result of this conflict will continue.
Realization of the sales, operating income and synergy targets for the JLG acquisition will require integration of JLG’s sales and marketing, distribution, manufacturing and engineering organizations. JLG is a complex, global business. The successful integration of JLG will require substantial attention from our management team. The diversion of management attention, as well as any other difficulties we may encounter in the integration process, could have a material adverse effect on our net sales, financial condition, profitability and/or cash flows. We cannot provide any assurance that we will be able to integrate the operations of JLG successfully, that we will be able to fully realize anticipated synergies from the acquisition or that we will be able to operate the JLG business as profitably as anticipated.
As a result of financing the JLG acquisition, we are highly leveraged. We had approximately $3.1 billion of debt outstanding as of December 31, 2007. Our ability to make required payments of principal and interest on our debt will depend on our future performance, which, to a certain extent, is subject to general economic, financial, competitive and other factors that are beyond our control. Based upon our current level of operations, we believe that cash flow from operations, available cash and available borrowings under our credit facilities will be adequate to meet our future liquidity needs. However, we cannot provide any assurance that our business will generate sufficient cash flow from operations or that future borrowings will be available under our credit facilities in an amount sufficient to enable us to service our indebtedness or to fund our other liquidity needs. In addition, our credit facilities contain financial and restrictive covenants that may limit our ability to, among other things, borrow additional funds or take advantage of business opportunities. Our failure to comply with such covenants could result in an event of default that, if not cured or waived, could have a material adverse effect on our financial condition, results of operations and debt service capability.
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Our high level of debt, current conditions in the credit markets and the covenants contained in our credit facilities could have important consequences for our operations, including:
| • | Increase our vulnerability to general adverse economic and industry conditions and detract from our ability to withstand successfully a downturn in our highly cyclical markets or the economy generally; |
| • | Require us to dedicate a substantial portion of our cash flow from operations to required payments on debt, thereby reducing the availability of such cash flow to fund working capital, capital expenditures, research and development and other general corporate activities; |
| • | Limit our ability to obtain additional financing in the future to fund working capital, capital expenditures and other general corporate requirements; |
| • | Limit our flexibility in planning for, or reacting to, changes in our business and the markets we serve; |
| • | Place us at a competitive disadvantage compared to less leveraged competitors; and |
| • | Make us vulnerable to increases in interest rates because a portion of our debt under our credit facilities may be at variable rates. |
We are dependent on U.S. and foreign government contracts for a substantial portion of our business. That business is subject to the following risks, among others, that could have a material adverse effect on our operating performance:
| • | Our business is susceptible to changes in the U.S. defense budget, which may reduce revenues that we expect from our defense business. |
| • | The U.S. government may not appropriate funding that we expect for our U.S. government contracts, which may prevent us from realizing revenues under current contracts or receiving additional orders that we anticipate we will receive. |
| • | Most of our government contracts are fixed-price contracts, and our actual costs may exceed our projected costs, which could result in lower profits or net losses under these contracts. |
| • | We are required to spend significant sums on product development and testing, bid and proposal activities and pre-contract engineering, tooling and design activities in competitions to have the opportunity to be awarded these contracts. |
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| • | Competitions for the award of defense truck contracts are intense, and we cannot provide any assurance that we will be successful in the defense truck procurement competitions in which we participate, especially competitions for armored vehicles such as the DoD’s Joint Light Tactical Vehicle program and Mine Resistant Ambush Protected vehicle programs, as these involve new product lines for us. |
| • | Certain of our government contracts could be suspended or terminated and all such contracts expire in the future and may not be replaced, which could reduce expected revenues from these contracts. |
| • | Our defense products undergo rigorous testing by the customer and are subject to highly technical requirements. Any failure to pass these tests or to comply with these requirements could result in unanticipated retrofit costs, delayed acceptance of trucks or late or no payments under such contracts. |
| • | Our government contracts are subject to audit, which could result in adjustments of our costs and prices under these contracts. |
| • | Our defense truck contracts are often large in size and require significant personnel and production resources, and when such contracts end, we must make adjustments to personnel and production resources. |
| • | We periodically experience difficulties with sourcing sufficient vehicle carcasses to maintain our defense truck remanufacturing schedule, which can create uncertainty for this area of our business. |
The Geesink Norba Group, our European refuse collection vehicle business, operated at a loss in fiscal 2007 due to soft market demand for its products in the United Kingdom, the lack of available chassis for mounting refuse collection vehicles in France and some market share losses. We have taken steps to turn around the Geesink Norba Group business, including selling an unprofitable facility in The Netherlands during the first quarter of fiscal 2008 and reaching an agreement with the Works Council in Sweden regarding rationalizing a facility in that country, reducing its work force, installing new executive leadership, integrating operations with JLG, implementing lean manufacturing practices, introducing new products and outsourcing components to lower cost manufacturing sites. We incurred an operating loss at this business again in the first quarter of fiscal 2008 as we executed on a number of the turnaround initiatives described above. We expect to incur additional operating losses in fiscal 2008 as we continue these turnaround activities. We may incur costs to continue to implement any such turn around beyond our current expectations for such costs. In addition, we cannot provide any assurance that the Geesink Norba Group will be able to operate profitably after such activities have been completed. Further, if we are unable to continue to turn around the business of the Geesink Norba Group, then we may be required to record a non-cash impairment charge for Geesink Norba Group goodwill, and there could be other material adverse effects on our net sales, financial condition, profitability and/or cash flows.
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For the fiscal year ended September 30, 2007, approximately 25% of our net sales were attributable to products sold outside of the United States. Expanding international sales is a part of our growth strategy. International operations and sales are subject to various risks, including political, religious and economic instability, local labor market conditions, the imposition of foreign tariffs and other trade barriers, the impact of foreign government regulations and the effects of income and withholding taxes, governmental expropriation and differences in business practices. We may incur increased costs and experience delays or disruptions in product deliveries and payments in connection with international manufacturing and sales that could cause loss of revenues and earnings. In addition, we are increasingly subject to export control regulations, including, without limitation, the United States Export Administration Regulations and the International Traffic in Arms Regulations. Unfavorable changes in the political, regulatory and business climate could have a material adverse effect on our net sales, financial condition, profitability and/or cash flows.
The results of operations and financial condition of our subsidiaries that conduct operations in foreign countries are reported in the relevant foreign currencies and then translated into U.S. dollars at the applicable exchange rates for inclusion in our consolidated financial statements, which are stated in U.S. dollars. In addition, we have significant firm sales orders in backlog that are denominated in Euros, U.K. pounds sterling, the Australian dollar and other currencies, certain agreements with subcontractors denominated in these currencies and sales of inventory denominated in U.S. dollars to certain of our subsidiaries that have functional currencies other than the U.S. dollar, all of which will subject us to foreign currency transaction risk to the extent they are not hedged. We actively strive to hedge these foreign currency transaction risks but cannot provide assurance that we will be successful in doing so. The exchange rates between many of these currencies and the U.S. dollar have fluctuated significantly in recent years and may fluctuate significantly in the future. Such fluctuations, in particular those with respect to the Euro, the U.K. pound sterling and the Australian dollar, may have a material effect on our net sales, financial condition, profitability and/or cash flows and may significantly affect the comparability of our results between financial periods.
We have a portfolio of finance receivables with customers in our access equipment segment and we are a party to agreements whereby we guarantee the indebtedness of customers in our access equipment segment. We evaluate the collectibility of open accounts, finance and pledged finance receivables, notes receivable and our guarantees of indebtedness of others based on a combination of factors and establish reserves based on our estimates of potential losses. In circumstances where we believe it is probable that a specific customer will have difficulty meeting its financial obligations, a specific reserve is recorded to reduce the net recognized receivable to the amount we expect to collect, and/or we recognize a liability for a guarantee we expect to pay, taking into account any amounts that we would anticipate realizing if we are forced to take action against the equipment that supports the customer’s financial obligations to us. We also establish additional reserves based upon our perception of the quality of the current receivables, the current financial position of our customers and past collections experience. The historical loss experience of our finance receivables portfolio is limited, however, and therefore may not be indicative of future losses. We also face a concentration of credit risk. For the fiscal year ended September 30, 2007, approximately 45% of JLG’s sales were to its top ten customers. Furthermore, some of these customers are highly leveraged. We may incur losses in excess of our recorded reserves if the financial condition of our customers were to deteriorate or the full amount of any anticipated proceeds from the sale of the collateral supporting our customers’ financial obligations is not realized.
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We have experienced, and may in the future experience, significant disruption or termination of the supply of some of our parts, materials, components and final assemblies that we obtain from sole source suppliers or subcontractors or incur a significant increase in the cost of these parts, materials, components or final assemblies. Such disruptions, terminations or cost increases could delay sales of our vehicles and vehicle bodies and could result in a material adverse effect on our net sales, financial condition, profitability and/or cash flows.
Both our products and the operation of our manufacturing facilities are subject to statutory and regulatory requirements. These include environmental requirements applicable to manufacturing and vehicle emissions, government contracting regulations and domestic and international trade regulations. A significant change to these regulatory requirements could substantially increase manufacturing costs or impact the size or timing of demand for our products, all of which could make our business results more variable.
We operate in highly competitive industries. Several of our competitors have greater financial, marketing, manufacturing and distribution resources than us and we are facing competitive pricing from new entrants in certain markets. Our products may not continue to compete successfully with the products of competitors, and we may not be able to retain or increase our customer base or to improve or maintain our profit margins on sales to our customers, all of which could adversely affect our net sales, financial condition, profitability and/or cash flows.
| Item 9.01. | Financial Statements and Exhibits. |
| (a) | Not applicable. |
| (b) | Not applicable. |
| (c) | Not applicable. |
| (d) | Exhibits. The following exhibits are being furnished herewith: |
| (99.1) | Oshkosh Truck Corporation Press Release dated February 1, 2008. |
| (99.2) | Script for conference call held February 1, 2008. |
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SIGNATURES
Pursuant to the requirements of the Securities Exchange Act of 1934, the registrant has duly caused this report to be signed on its behalf by the undersigned hereunto duly authorized.
| OSHKOSH TRUCK CORPORATION | |
Date: February 1, 2008 |
By: /s/ David M. Sagehorn |
| David M. Sagehorn | |
| Executive Vice President, | |
| Chief Financial Officer and Treasurer |
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OSHKOSH TRUCK CORPORATION
Exhibit Index to
Current Report on Form 8-K
Dated February 1, 2008
Exhibit
Number
| (99.1) | Oshkosh Truck Corporation Press Release dated February 1, 2008. |
| (99.2) | Script for conference call held February 1, 2008. |