SOUTHFIELD — Superior Industries International Inc. (NYSE:SUP), the largest manufacturer of aluminum wheels for passenger cars and light-duty vehicles in North America, said Modnay it expected higher margins for 2015 as part of its financial outlook for the year.
Overall, Superior predicted sales of $725 million to $800 million.
As for earnings before interest, taxes, depreciation and amortization — typically known as cash flow — margins were expected to rise 1 to 2 percentage points in 2015 over 2014 levels.
Value-added sales, which primarily removes from net sales the value of aluminum that is passed through to customers, is expected to be in the range of $325 million to $360 million. EBITDA margins measured as a percentage of value-added sales are expected to increase 3.5 to 5 percentage points.
Capital expenditures for 2015 are expected to come in around $40 million, significantly lower than 2014, when the company was investing in the completion of its new manufacturing plant in Mexico.
Superior Industries president and CEO Don Stebbins said 2015 “will be an important year for our company as we move toward full production capability in our new Mexican facility, continue to deliver high quality product and innovative ideas, while improving operational and administrative efficiencies. We are confident our investments in the business combined with our focus on operational excellence will allow us to reach double-digit EBITDA margins by 2017.”
The outlook assumes North American Light Vehicle production to grow approximately 2.2 percent to 17.4 million units in 2015.
Superior has plants in the United States and Mexico supplying aluminum wheels to BMW, Chrysler, Ford, General Motors, Mitsubishi, Nissan, Subaru, Tesla, Toyota and Volkswagen.
More at www.supind.com.