Navistar advances after report on Cummins engines

Navistar International Corp., which is trying to get its 13-liter truck engine certified for sale in the U.S., rose 11 percent after a report that the company may start offering Cummins Inc. engines in addition to its own MaxxForce product.

Navistar rose to $28.37 at 4:15 p.m. in New York, the most in three weeks. The shares have dropped 25 percent this year after falling 35 percent last year.

The company plans to offer Cummins engines, OTR Global LLC said today in a report, citing two unidentified fleet executives. One of the executives said trucks will be available in 2013, according to the report. Karen Denning, a Navistar spokeswoman, said the company doesn’t respond to “rumor and speculation.”

Navistar, based in Lisle, Illinois, is struggling to meet 2010 federal emission standards for its 13-liter heavy truck engine. Earlier this month, the company lowered its full-year profit forecast to a range of break-even to $2 a share, excluding some costs. Navistar in February forecast 2012 profit of as much as $5.75 a share. The company reduced the figure to a maximum of $5.25 a share in March.

Cummins jumped 5 percent to $96.91, the biggest increase since March 13. Carole Casto, a spokeswoman for the Columbus, Indiana-based company, didn’t return a call seeking comment.

Billionaire investor Carl Icahn boosted his stake in Navistar this month to 11.9 percent. Hedge-fund manager Mark Rachesky took a 13.6 percent stake and said in a June 25 disclosure statement he planned to talk to management about the “business, operations, strategy and future plans.”