Thor Industries, Inc. (NYSE: THO) today provided an operations update in response to the evolving conditions relating to the coronavirus (COVID-19) pandemic.

Production Shutdown

"As the coronavirus pandemic continues to evolve, Thor remains focused on the safety of its employees, their families, and all of the communities in which we operate. The concern for the safety of our people is always paramount but the situation of today is unique and calls for action. As state governments, including Indiana and Ohio where a substantial number of our production facilities exist, declare statewide emergencies requiring their citizens to stay at home except for limited circumstances, Thor is today announcing the temporary suspension of all of its production in North America. Additionally, a substantial portion of our production in Europe is temporarily suspended as well," said Bob Martin, President and CEO of Thor Industries.

Maintaining a Positive Long-term Outlook

"Prior to the onset of the coronavirus, we were hearing reports of strong early season results and high optimism from our dealers in North American and in our primary sales areas within Europe. The inventory glut in the retail channel had been sold through, and inventory levels were considered to be in a balanced position in both North America and Europe. While circumstances have obviously changed and we could not have anticipated current conditions and the impact on the RV industry and our Company, our variable cost model and the flexibility it provides to reduce, or ramp up, production quickly as market conditions change are a key benefit to Thor as we, our employees, dealers and customers all adapt to the new challenges the pandemic is creating. We will continue to monitor the COVID-19 situation closely, including the work of the CDC, World Health Organization, and other government agencies, and will update our actions and policies as appropriate.

"We believe the long-term RV market will be robust once again, and when that time comes, we will take advantage of our flexible business model to quickly resume production to meet dealer orders. As we look to the future when we are past the coronavirus pandemic, we remain optimistic about the long-term outlook for both Thor and the RV industry," Martin concluded.