Pandemic halves Paccar’s annual profit

Paccar’s annual profit was cut nearly in half last year as the Bellevue-based truck manufacturer wrestled with the global impacts of the pandemic and a 27% drop in sales.

The company reported Tuesday its 2020 profit was $1.30 billion, just 54% of the prior year’s $2.39 billion. On a per-share basis, earnings fell to $3.74, from $6.87 in 2019.

Paccar’s fourth-quarter results showed improvement, with sales down only 9% from the prior year’s final quarter.

“A strong rebound in manufacturing, housing starts, automotive production and consumer spending in the second half of 2020 resulted in good freight tonnage and robust demand for Kenworth and Peterbilt trucks,” Darrin Siver, Paccar senior vice president, said in the earnings release.

The company said its U.S. and Canada market share for Kenworth and Peterbilt trucks increased during the year, to 30.1% for heavy duty Class 8 trucks and 22.6% for medium-duty trucks. It projected increased demand for trucks in North America, Europe and South America this year.

Last week the company announced a partnership with Silicon Valley self-driving technology firm Aurora Innovation aimed at bringing a self-driving truck to market “in the next several years.”