RACINE - Twin Disc Monday issued a dismal earnings report for July-September which flipped a 22 cents-per-share gain for the quarter last year to an identical loss this time.

The Racine-based company lost $2.4 million, or 22 cents per share, for the past quarter. A year earlier Twin Disc made a net profit of $2.5 million, or 22 cents per share.

The loss was also a surprise, in view of analysts' projections. Their average forecast was for a 17 cent profit for the quarter.

The market reacted by dropping Twin Disc's stock price by $1.38, or 9.45 percent, to $13.13 per share at Monday's close.

Sales for the quarter, the company's fiscal 2010 first quarter, totaled $47.1 million, compared with $72.7 million for the same period last year. That one was the second-best sales total for that quarter in company history.

Earnings before interest, taxes, depreciation and amortization was a loss of $808,000 compared with a gain of $6.8 million a year earlier.

The board of directors declared a dividend of 7 cents per share.

Twin Disc attributed the decline in sales to the global recession and shutdowns at its Italian, Belgian and Racine manufacturing facilities.

Twin Disc designs and manufactures marine and heavy-duty off-highway power transmission equipment, primarily for the pleasure craft, commercial and military marine markets.

Company Chairman and Chief Executive Officer Michael Batten stated in Monday's news release, "While demand from our pleasure craft and industrial markets remains depressed, trends in the commercial marine market, particularly in the Pacific Basin, remain steady.

"Orders from the airport rescue and fire fighting and land-based military sectors are also holding up well, while order intake from the military patrol boat market has been growing.

"Our outlook is for improving quarterly trends for the balance of the fiscal year," Batten stated.