Terex Falls to 4Q Loss, Plans Massive Job Cuts

Diversified manufacturer Terex Corp. said Wednesday it fell to a $421.5 million loss in the fourth quarter and said it has already cut or will cut more than 5,000 jobs, including the majority of its temporary work force.

The company also provided a dismal revenue outlook for 2009. Shares tumbled $3.22, or 24 percent, to $10.40 in aftermarket electronic trading, having closed earlier up 10 cents at $13.62. The stock, which last May traded as high as $76.25, was hit hard by the global market meltdown, bottoming at $8.97 in November.

Terex's loss in the final quarter of 2008 was equivalent to $4.46 a share, compared with net income of $174.0 million, or $1.67 per share, for the fourth quarter of 2007.

The latest period includes charges of $4.84 per share to write down the value of goodwill in the company's construction, roadbuilding and utility products businesses. It also was hurt by charges of 24 cents a share related to cutting production levels. Excluding these items, profit would have totaled 62 cents per share.

Revenue dropped roughly 20 percent to $2.08 billion from $2.59 billion a year ago, as declining demand in the company's aerial work platforms, construction and materials processing businesses continued.

Analysts surveyed by Thomson Reuters, on average, were expecting a fourth-quarter profit of 61 cents a share on higher revenue of $2.28 billion. Analysts generally exclude one-time items from their estimates.

For fiscal 2008, Terex reported net income of $71.9 million, or 72 cents a share, down from $613.9 million, or $5.85 a share, for fiscal 2007. Twelve-month revenue came to $9.89 billion, an increase of 8.2 percent from $9.14 billion in 2007.

"This past year has been like no other — the first half of the year exhibited robust growth and expansion, while the second half of the year was severely impacted by the global credit crisis and economic deterioration, which drove significant declines in customer demand in our businesses," said Ron DeFeo, chairman and chief executive, in a statement.