Fastenal's Q3 EPS beats estimates as operating margin improves
Fastenal's Q3 EPS beats estimates as operating margin improves
Overview
Supply chain services provider's Q3 sales rose 15.5%, slightly beating analyst expectations
Q3 EPS beat analyst expectations
Company returned $328 mln to shareholders via dividends and share repurchases
Outlook
Company expects 2026 capital expenditures between $310 mln and $330 mln
Fastenal lowers 2026 goal for weighted FASTBin and FASTVend device signings to 27,000-29,000 MEUs
Company expects ongoing tax rate, absent discrete items, to be about 24.6%
Result Drivers
LARGER CUSTOMERS - Co said sales growth was mainly driven by share gains with larger customers and contract signings
PRICING ACTIONS - Product pricing contributed approximately 240 basis points to net sales growth in Q3
OPERATING EXPENSE LEVERAGE - Operating margin improved as SG&A expense leverage more than offset customer mix-related gross margin pressure
Company press release: ID:nBw3gcgs5a
Key Details
Metric | Beat/Miss | Actual | Consensus Estimate |
Q3 Sales | Slight Beat* | $2.46 bln | $2.44 bln (13 Analysts) |
Q3 EPS | Beat | $0.35 | $0.34 (14 Analysts) |
*Applies to a deviation of less than 1%; not applicable for per-share numbers.
Analyst Coverage
The current average analyst rating on the shares is "hold" and the breakdown of recommendations is 6 "strong buy" or "buy", 10 "hold" and 5 "sell" or "strong sell"
The average consensus recommendation for the industrial machinery & equipment peer group is "buy."
Wall Street's median 12-month price target for Fastenal Company is $50.00, about 2.8% below its October 13 closing price of $51.43
The stock recently traded at 37 times the next 12-month earnings vs. a P/E of 37 three months ago
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(This story was created using Reuters automation and AI based on LSEG and company data. It was checked and edited by a Reuters journalist prior to publication.)