Goodyear reported a decrease in sales and a net loss for Q4 2019, impacted by discrete tax adjustments and rationalization charges. However, the company saw strong performance in its U.S. consumer and commercial replacement businesses, and growth in consumer replacement in China and Brazil.
Sales decreased by 4% to $3.7 billion, primarily due to lower industry volume and unfavorable foreign currency translation.
Net loss was $392 million ($1.68 per share) compared to a net income of $110 million ($0.47 per share) in the previous year, driven by discrete tax adjustments.
Adjusted net income was $45 million (19 cents per share), down from $120 million (51 cents per share) in 2018.
Segment operating income decreased to $242 million from $307 million a year ago, reflecting lower tax settlements in Brazil, lower factory utilization, and reduced volume.
Goodyear's operations in China have been disrupted by the coronavirus. The company’s office-based associates will continue to work remotely through at least Feb. 17. Following a nine-day closure, the Goodyear-Pulandian manufacturing plant restarted operations on a limited basis on Feb. 10 to support customers across the Asia Pacific region. It is not clear what the full impact of the coronavirus disruption will be.
Visualization of income flow from segment revenue to net income