Fleetwood loss widens as sales fall

Fleetwood Enterprises Inc. said its fiscal first-quarter loss widened on declining recreational vehicle sales, but results still topped Wall Street expectations.

The maker of recreational vehicles and manufactured homes reported a loss of $2.3 million, or 4 cents a share, versus a loss of $411,000, or a penny a share, a year earlier.

Fleetwood posted a loss from continuing operations of $2 million, or 3 cents a share, compared with income from continuing operations of $669,000, or a penny a share.

Analysts surveyed by Thomson Financial had predicted a loss of 10 cents a share.

Quarterly revenue for the period that ended July 29 dropped 4% to $510.2 million. The results missed Wall Street’s estimate of $526.7 million.

RV group sales slipped to $359.3 million from $371.2 million, with travel trailer revenue sliding 48% to $63.7 million. Folding trailer sales fell 10% to $21.9 million.

Housing group revenue fell to $144.2 million from $145.7 million, and supply group sales slid to $6.8 million from $12.9 million.

Fleetwood said it might see similar results in the second quarter but cautioned that its performance could be affected by ongoing real estate concerns that are roiling financial markets.