WEST CHICAGO, Ill.,
Feb. 8, 2022 /PRNewswire/
-- Titan International, Inc. (NYSE: TWI) ("Titan" or "TWI")
today released the following comments from its Chairman of the
Board, Morry Taylor.
"A few weeks ago I shared my thoughts with what is going on
within the U.S. farm market and how that positively impacts Titan's
business. Since then, the U.S. equity markets have been all
over the place and TWI has experienced this as well. I
believe any business that is involved in the production of food in
the U.S. is likely going to the see new highs in their
business. This should include equipment manufacturing,
suppliers, farmers, and dealers. All you need to do is look
at the current prices of corn, soybeans, cotton, wheat – to see
that virtually everything to do with farming is on a good path and
going higher. There should be a record number of acres
planted, but yet the inventories of grain stocks are projected to
remain low even with a bumper crop. I've said it before and
still firmly believe that every company involved in farming is
going to have higher sales these next few years.
"I have mentioned a number of times that Paul Reitz and his team overcame the challenges
of the past couple years and have demonstrated they are growing the
business on a good trajectory, along with building Titan's
foundation for the future. Titan operates plants in larger
metro areas like Sao Paolo, Brazil
and Des Moines, Iowa, with the
rest of our operations primarily in more rural areas. But
what this really means is that our plants are strategically located
near our customers. This gives Titan the ability to take
advantage of its existing manufacturing footprint in wheels, tires
and undercarriage to better serve our customers and mitigate their
global supply chain risks. This is why Paul and his team are
working extremely hard to manage the strong demand and increased
expectations as potential contracts are signed in the next few
months that should improve TWI's long-term growth
pattern.
"Last week Titan announced a new agreement with Kubota.
This is a big deal for Titan because a few years ago TWI also
developed a new tire named the R-14 that has grown in volume and I
anticipate the same with these latest tires. A number of
years ago Titan developed the LSW designed tire which operates on
lower inflation pressure which lowers ground pressure reducing soil
compaction. Well, TWI plans to continue to increase
production of LSW tires because of the higher demand. By
using LSW tires/wheels in place of regular duals, field test show 5
extra bushels of corn and 7 additional bushels of soybeans per acre
with everything the same except for LSW tires. The study was
done in 2016 at Stallings Farm in Charleston, Missouri. Back then corn was
at $3.20/bushel, that is $16 more per acre, so for 1,000 acres this adds
$16,000 to a farmer's bottom
line. Today, at $6.60/bushel
that is $33.00 more per acre or
$33,000 per 1,000 acres. Now
you see why TWI needs to significantly increase production and the
great news is these new tires and wheels carry strong margins for
Titan.
"By the way, the big infrastructure bill signed by President
Biden is a waiting game because the government will decide who gets
the funds on the projects. My guess is that it will be late
2023 or mid-2024 before things start to move. I believe that
could either super-charge Titan's business, or, at the very least,
help continue our business at the current levels. It's all
good news as I see it.
"I had lunch this past week with some investors who own both TWI
stock and our bonds. One of the gentlemen is a seasoned investor
(which means he is an old guy like me) who taught me something
about investing that I didn't know. He explained how a small
cap company like TWI needs to more than ever prove to investors why
we will continue to deliver over the coming years. For over 50
years, I have lived through every up and down cycle, so what is
different today? Well, I have never lived through a tsunami
of momentum like what is happening now in the agriculture
business. Corn, soybeans, cotton and wheat are all pushing
high prices and inventories are low for all of them. New farm
equipment is on a one year wait and late model used equipment is
not available right now. That suggests demand
for 2022 is locked-up and 2023 looks like it'll be great as
well. Does anyone think going into 2024, we are going into a
slowdown – no way! The seasoned investor looked at me and
said 'I got it'! We ended our conversation on this topic by
agreeing that TWI has a good run ahead of us, given how all these
market circumstances have come together at once. This is why
we will continue to tell our story and explain why we
believe TWI is a good investment.
"Titan's fourth quarter earnings will be released in early March
and you should expect to see continued strong trends as seen the
first three quarters of 2021. I believe the outlook that
Paul and David Martin will outline
for the business in 2022 will come as good news for Titan's
shareholders. As someone who has over 50 years' experience in
this business, it is very rewarding to see a new team come together
and build on what was there. There is one thing you can
always count on in the future -- we will all need food!
That's my two cents!"
Safe Harbor Statement: This press release contains
forward-looking statements. These forward-looking statements are
covered by the safe harbor for "forward-looking statements"
provided by the Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995.
The words "believe," "expect," "anticipate," "plan," "would,"
"could," "potential," "may," "will," and other similar expressions
are intended to identify forward-looking statements, which are
generally not historical in nature. These forward-looking
statements are based on our current expectations and beliefs
concerning future developments and their potential effect on us.
Although we believe the assumptions upon which these
forward-looking statements are based are reasonable, these
assumptions are subject to significant risks and uncertainties.
These risk factors include, but are not limited to the effect of
the COVID-19 pandemic on our operations and financial performance;
the effect of a recession on the Company and its customers and
suppliers; changes in the Company's end-user markets into which the
Company sells its products as a result of domestic and world
economic or regulatory influences or otherwise; changes in the
marketplace, including new products and pricing changes by the
Company's competitors; availability and price of raw materials; and
levels of operating efficiencies. Additional risks and other
factors that could cause actual results or events to differ
materially from those contemplated in this release are detailed in
the Company's reports on Forms 10-K and 10-Q filed with the
Securities and Exchange Commission, especially the disclosures
under "Risk Factors" in those reports. These forward-looking
statements are made only as of the date hereof. The Company
cautions that any forward-looking statements included in this press
release are subject to a number of risks and uncertainties, and the
Company undertakes no obligation to publicly update or revise any
forward-looking statements, whether as a result of new information,
changed circumstances or future events, or for any other reason,
except as required by law.
About Titan: Titan International, Inc. (NYSE: TWI) is a
leading global manufacturer of off-highway wheels, tires,
assemblies, and undercarriage products. Headquartered in
West Chicago, Illinois, the
company globally produces a broad range of products to meet the
specifications of original equipment manufacturers (OEMs) and
aftermarket customers in the agricultural,
earthmoving/construction, and consumer markets. For more
information, visit www.titan-intl.com.
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SOURCE Titan International, Inc.