HOG - Harley-Davidson Is Pinning Its Comeback Hopes on Putting More Riders on the Road
Sometimes, being iconic isn't enough to keep a company relevant. Sears, for example, was once the biggest player in United States retail. In 2019, it languishes somewhere between ignored and nonexistent. Similar fates have befallen countless other brands -- sometimes due to changing technology (fare thee well, Blockbuster) and at other times because of mismanagement or unsustainable financial choices (goodbye, Payless and Toys R Us).
Harley-Davidson (NYSE: HOG) risks becoming the next American icon to descend into irrelevance. The motorcycle maker's sales have been falling steadily. They dropped by 8.4% globally in the first quarter -- down 8% in the U.S. -- and they are off 6.6% through the first six months of the year.
In its second-quarter earnings release, the company said its poor U.S. sales results were "driven largely by continued weak industry sales." That's a pretty damning comment about the market that provides about two-thirds of its sales, and it's something that Harley has to address if it hopes to turn itself around.