J.P. Morgan Reports Harley-Davidson Beats Volumes Slightly in Q4

In a recent research report published by J.P. Morgan, Harley-Davidson's

EPS of $0.24 was slightly better than consensus of $0.22. “Revenue was $1,027MM vs. JPM of $952MM, mainly driven by motorcycle division with modest upside in General Merchandise as well. Motorcycle ASP was $15.6k in Q4. Motorcycle operating margin was 3.5% (JPM 2.5%), with 170bps shortfall on gross margin being equally offset by lower than expected SG&A as percent of sales, and also being boosted by $7MM of lower restructuring expense. HDFS profits were $56.8MM vs. JPM $64MM. Tax rate was 34.6% vs. JPM of 35%, and share count was 4MM lower than JPM,” J.P. Morgan said in the report. J.P. Morgan maintains its Neutral rating on Harley-Davidson, which closed yesterday at $41.87.