Oshkosh Corporation (NYSE:OSK) Q3 2023 Earnings Call Transcript

John Pfeifer: Yes. So you are basically talking about product utilization. We see utilization of product at a very healthy level today. It ebbs and flows, right? And certainly, as you put – as we’ve made progress, putting a little bit more equipment into the marketplace is certainly been needed. You might see ebbs and flows to that utilization rate. But the utilization rate is still at a very healthy level. And our customers still need a lot of equipment. And I think that some of the customers that we have that are publicly traded, you can see that there’s still a need for more equipment. There is a healthy dynamic in the market right now.

Jerry Revich: Right. And maybe just to put a finer point on it sounds like the telescopic and is still extremely tight, but there is some loosening on scissors and telehandlers. Is that right? And can you comment on what you’re seeing in Europe specifically? I think there are some concerns around utilization slowing there?

John Pfeifer: I think when you say loosening, I mean, we don’t see loosening as a bad thing. We’re able to produce more equipment, we’re able to get more equipment into the hands of our customers who are deploying that equipment and in some cases, they’re starting to replace older equipment, which is a good thing, and you see that in the used market. So I think you’ll continue to see that replacement dynamic happen over a long period of time. So the scissors and the AWPs that are the booms that are continuing to go in the market, it’s a healthy thing. Our customers want to see that. They want to see it continue. The telehandler production, we continue to see expanded use cases for the product. And that’s why we’re continuing to increase our output in that segment.

Operator: Our next question comes from the line of Seth Weber with Wells Fargo. Please proceed with your questions.

Seth Weber: Hi, guys. Good morning. I wanted to go back to an earlier question about defense margin. I think it looks like you are penciling in something in the 6% range or so for the fourth quarter. I think I heard you say something about mix is going to be more towards parts and stuff like that. So again, I’m just trying to understand, is this 6%-ish number for the fourth quarter a good number to use going forward? Because this has been an area where margins – a lot of us have had a hard time trying to get arms around margins for this business. Thanks.

Mike Pack: Yes. I would say the fourth quarter margin, it’s mixed, but then it had also expanded to typically in quarters that we have larger orders, particularly with JLTVs and we do expect the JLTV order we do benefit from that in the quarter. So I would say the fourth quarter is higher than what our run rate is right now versus like a full year. So I would say that again, we’re not providing guidance yet for next year, but we’re sort of still operating in the lower to mid-single digits net business. And the turning point is when we start really ramping up NGDV at scale.

Seth Weber: Okay, that’s helpful. And can you just comment, given the geopolitical events, have you seen it pick up in conversations for any international JLTV interest?

John Pfeifer: Well, sure, we have – I’ll remind everyone while we have the DoD contract ramping down, we’ll continue to produce JLTVs for international customers for the foreseeable future. Yes, there is demand there. I mean with regard to the current conflicts that are going on, I can’t comment on the specifics. But I will say that we, of course, closely monitor it. And we will always be standing ready to support the Department of Defense and our allies. I can’t say more than that, other than to say, yes, of course, there is international demand for these products.

Operator: Our next question comes from the line of Stanley Elliott with Stifel. Please proceed with your questions.