Manitowoc Company's Stock Surges 13% Following Q4 Report

Manitowoc Company Inc MTW's stock was one of Wall Street's top gainers on Friday after the company reported its fourth quarter results on Thursday.

Manitowoc earned $0.43 per share in the fourth quarter on revenue of $934.8 million. Wall Street analysts were expecting the company to earn $0.21 per share on revenue of $936.95 million.

Net earnings for the quarter on a GAAP basis rose to $43.8 million from $33.6 million in the same quarter a year ago.

Shares of Manitowoc opened for trading at $15.52. Shortly before noon, the stock was trading at $15.89, up 13.42 percent on the day.

Net sales for Manitowoc's Foodservice group in the fourth quarter rose 4.7 percent from a year ago to $391.7 million, while net sales in the company's Crane segment fell 18.1 percent to $543.1 million.

"From a sales perspective, our Foodservice segment delivered mid-single digit sales growth in the quarter. Leverage from higher sales and excellent progress in executing Foodservice's previously announced profitability initiatives drove a significant improvement in operating margins. Our Cranes business performed as expected during the fourth quarter. While orders improved sequentially from the third quarter, sales continue to be impacted by tepid customer demand. However, the benefits of cost control actions are beginning to take hold to improve overall profitability," commented Kenneth W. Krueger, Manitowoc's chairman and interim chief executive officer.

Looking forward to fiscal 2016, Manitowoc guided its Foodservice segment's organic revenue to rise 2 percent to 4 percent while the Cranes segment is expected to see flat revenue year-over-year.