MSC Industrial Q2 sales rise 2.9% but miss estimates

MSC Industrial Direct

01/04/2026 11:41

Overview

US MRO distributor's fiscal Q2 sales rose 2.9% but missed analyst expectations

Adjusted EPS for fiscal Q2 missed analyst expectations

Company achieved higher operating margin, aided by gross margin expansion and cost cuts

Outlook

Company expects Q3 ADS growth of 5%-7% YoY

MSC Industrial sees Q3 adjusted operating margin at 9.7%-10.3%

Company maintains full-year outlook for depreciation, capex, FCF conversion, and tax rate

Result Drivers

MARGIN EXPANSION - Operating margin benefited from higher gross margin and actions to reduce structural costs, according to interim CFO Greg Clark

CORE CUSTOMER SALES - Core Customer daily sales outperformed total company for third consecutive quarter, per CEO Martina McIsaac

Company press release: ID:nACSqxdHca

Key Details

Metric
Beat/Miss
Actual
Consensus Estimate
Q2 Sales
Miss
$917.80 mln
$931.73 mln (8 Analysts)
Q2 Adjusted EPS
Miss
$0.82
$0.84 (8 Analysts)
Q2 EPS
$0.76
Q2 EBIT
$64.8 mln
Q2 EBIT Margin
7.1%


Analyst Coverage

The current average analyst rating on the shares is "hold" and the breakdown of recommendations is no "strong buy" or "buy", 9 "hold" and no "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 MSC Industrial Direct Co Inc is $87.50, about 5.2% below its March 31 closing price of $92.27

The stock recently traded at 20 times the next 12-month earnings vs. a P/E of 19 three months ago

For questions concerning the data in this report, contact Estimates.Support@lseg.com. For any other questions or feedback, contact reuters.support@thomsonreuters.com.

(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.)