Harley-Davidson's net income slid 33 percent in the fourth quarter compared with last year when the company booked a $51 million gain related to taxes, AP said.

Net income figures fell just shy of Wall Street profit expectations, yet shares moved in and out of positive territory in premarket trading as the company outlined cost savings from a massive retooling at the iconic motorcycle maker.

For the three months ended Dec. 31, the Milwaukee motorcycle maker earned $70.6 million, or 31 cents per share. That's down from $105.7 million, or 24 cents per share, a year earlier.

The year-ago period included a $51 million benefit related to tax issues stemming from the sale of Italian motorcycle maker MV Agusta in 2010.

The per-share discrepancy is due to fewer shares outstanding in the current quarter.

Revenue declined slightly to $1.17 billion from $1.18 billion, hurt partly by plans for lower motorcycle shipments during the period related to a seasonal increase in production during 2013's first half.

Global retail sales of Harley-Davidson motorcycles increased 7.5 percent, with unit sales up in both the U.S. and overseas.

Harley-Davidson's full-year net income climbed 4 percent to $623.9 million, or $2.72 per share, from $599.1 million, or $2.33 per share, in the previous year.

Annual revenue rose 5 percent to $5.58 billion from $5.31 billion.