Wabash National Corp. announced that it established a new financial reporting segment, Diversified Products, in the fourth quarter of 2011. This segment comprises Wabash Composites (formerly DuraPlate Products Group), Wabash Energy and Environmental Solutions (formerly Allied Products Group) and Wabash Wood Products.
Starting with the 2011 Form 10-K and going forward, Wabash National will report its underlying earnings primarily on the following segments: Commercial Trailer Products, Diversified Products and Retail. The company says the new reporting structure better aligns its external reporting with how the business is being managed internally, and that greater visibility into the Diversified Products segment highlights an area that it views as an important potential source of growth and profitability while underscoring its ongoing commitment to diversify its product offerings and revenues.
“We have made great strides in our ongoing efforts in transforming Wabash National into a diversified industrial manufacturer to reduce cyclicality, improve profitability and drive higher growth,” says Dick Giromini, president and chief executive officer. “Since our transformation began in 2008, the company has realized significant growth in revenue and profitability from our diversification efforts. Our success has been driven by our ability to extend our industry-leading technology, leverage our core manufacturing expertise and develop products that complement the transportation equipment we offer. Given the progress of these efforts and the opportunities we look to capture going forward, we felt it was appropriate to enhance our reporting structure.”
Giromini says the new segmentation provides investors with improved visibility into Wabash National while better aligning its external reporting with how it manages the business. “We believe this also highlights our leading capabilities in composite technology and the compelling opportunities we see in further penetrating the energy and environmental space,” he says.
