Cost-cutting measures paid off for snowmobile maker Arctic Cat Inc., as the company posted a surprise fourth-quarter profit despite a lessened demand for its all-terrain vehicles.

Thief River Falls-based Arctic Cat (Nasdaq: ACAT) reported earnings of $424,000, or 2 cents per share, compared with a loss of $1.6 million, or 8 cents per share, for the same quarter in 2007.

Sales were down 2.1 percent to $168.9 million from $172.6 million a year earlier.

Analysts polled by Thomson Financial expected a loss of 4 cents per share on $168.2 million in revenue.

Arctic Cat acknowledged it experienced continued weak retail demand for ATVs, noting that sales of all-terrain vehicle sales fell 4 percent to $142.9 million. It also said that results for the fourth-quarter were impacted by the reduction of a planned, large multi-store retail customer order and an ATV parts supply issue.

However, sales of parts, garments and accessories grew 15 percent to $33 million.

CEO Christopher Twomey commented, "Although recreational vehicles continue to experience a tough retail market, we believe our current dealer inventory levels will enable growth in sales to dealers in our fiscal 2009."

For the full year, the company posted a loss of $3.3 million, or 18 cents per share, down from a profit of $22.1 million, or $1.15 per share, for 2007. Sales were also down 21 percent to $621.6 million from $782.4 million a year earlier.

Analysts were expecting a loss of 25 cents per share.

The company said it expects 2009 earnings of 18 cents to 28 cents a share, above estimates of 12 cents a share, with higher snowmobile revenue and flat to slightly higher all-terrain vehicle revenue.



article courtesy of: bizjournals.com

Updated Fri. May. 9 2008 11:04 AM ET
CTV.ca News Staff

A family of seven that spent six days lost in the Canadian Arctic survived by huddling inside a tent set up inside a makeshift igloo.
The family -- with five children under 12 -- was found safe Thursday, with the parents dragging a sled carrying their children.
None of the family members were injured in the ordeal.
They had been on a 250-kilometre trek, by snowmobile and sled, from Repulse Bay to Hall Beach, Nunavut when they took a wrong turn and got lost.
They had set out from Repulse Bay on May 1.
"We followed the tracks and we took a wrong turn," Merrill Siusangnark, the father, told CTV's Canada AM on Friday from Hall Beach.
"When I finally realized I didn't know the land that we were on, that we were in the wrong place, I tried to turn back to where I knew the land but my Ski-doo couldn't drag the komatik (sled)."
The family survived the frigid Arctic nights in a tent set up inside a makeshift, igloo huddled around a small stove with a dwindling supply of seal oil to burn, Siusangnark said.
During the day, the couple pulled the sled with the children inside, attempting to reach Hall Beach.
Meanwhile, ground crews began searching for the family on Sunday when they failed to arrive. It wasn't until Thursday that the weather lifted and a helicopter and airplane were able to join the search.
Bill Kennedy, a search co-ordinator in Repulse Bay, told The Canadian Press it was a group of Rangers -- mostly aboriginal military reservists -- who eventually found the family.
They followed a set of tracks that led to a burned-out snowmobile that the family appeared to have set on fire as a smoke signal to rescuers, CP reported. However, heavy cloud cover had made it impossible for rescuers to see the plume of smoke.
The Rangers found the family a short time after locating the snowmobile. They were near a river, fairly close to Hall Beach when they were found and had been heading in the right direction, according to a CP report.
They were transported to Hall Beach by helicopter, and everyone is now doing fine, Siusangnark said.

article courtesy of CTV.ca: Canadian Arctic Family found Safe

Snow Blankets Much Of Nebraska Panhandle
POSTED: 11:08 am CDT May 2, 2008


RUSHVILLE, Neb. -- Boys on snowmobiles rescued a rural Rushville woman who was stranded in the snow on her way to work.

Holly Landreth left for work about 4 a.m. Friday, as a spring storm caused near whiteout conditions in the Panhandle. She ended up in the middle of a field, not knowing where she was. Landreth used her cell phone to call for help, and local authorities and residents tried to find her from descriptions of her surroundings.

At about 9:30 a.m., two boys came upon her vehicle while snowmobiling, officials said.
Officials on Friday diverted traffic from several highways in the Nebraska Panhandle and west into Colorado because of blizzard-like conditions.

Interstate 80 was closed Friday morning from Sidney west into Wyoming. Wyoming closed several interstate stretches because of ice, snow and wind.

Colorado is rerouting Interstate 76 traffic onto U.S. Highway 138 at Julesburg.
In Nebraska, stalled vehicles are blocking U.S. 26 at Ogallala and Lewellen.
Schools across the Panhandle closed and officials are asked motorists to stay home.
The city of Chadron reported that 5 inches of heavy, wet snow fell overnight.
The weather service said the spring storm will strengthen over Nebraska and slowly move east.

article courtesy of: KETV Omaha