This Wednesday, March 19, 2014 photo shows CVO Deluxe Harley-Davidson at the South East Harley-Davidson in Bedford, Ohio. Harley Davidson reports quarterly earnings on Tuesday, April 22, 2014. (AP Photo/Tony Dejak)
April 22, 2014 - 5:16 AM
MILWAUKEE - Harley-Davidson's first-quarter earnings rose 18.7 per cent as motorcycle sales grew worldwide and efficiency efforts took hold.
The Milwaukee company says global sales of new motorcycles grew 5.8 per cent in the quarter as buyers responded to its new models.
Its earnings topped Wall Street estimates. Its shares rose more than 7 per cent on premarket trading.
Harley-Davidson posted net income of $265.9 million, up from $224.1 million a year ago.
That's $1.21 per share, compared with 99 cents in the first quarter of 2013. Analysts polled by FactSet expected earnings of $1.07 per share.
Motorcycle and related products revenue rose 11 per cent to $1.57 billion. Overall revenue including financial services rose to $1.73 billion from $1.57 billion.
News from © The Associated Press, 2014