4/14/2015 12:24:00 PM
NEWS BRIEFS
Fastener Sales Growth Slows At Fastenal
Fastenal fastener sales
Fastenal Co. reported fastener sales rose 5.5% in the first quarter of 2015 — well below the company’s fastener sales growth rate of 11.4% in the final quarter of 2014. The increase was most related to volume, with Fastenal noting “some price deflation” in its fastener line.
“(Our fastener) business really slowed down,” CEO Lee Hein noted in a conference call to investors. “We didn’t lose any customers but those customers are producing fewer widgets and therefore they need fewer fasteners.”
Overall Q1 sales gained 8.8% to $953.3 million despite being “hit hard by poor weather. Net earnings grew 14% to $127.6 million and EPS increased 13.2% to $0.43.
Fastenal continued to hire, increasing its workforce 9% to 12,907. In the last several months, the company has added 1,067 people to its stores.
Fastenal also closed 13 stores during Q1, bringing its overall store count to 2,624.
The number of industrial vending machines in operation increased 15.2% to 48,545 in Q1.
Related Stories:
• Reports Show Mixed Q1 Fastener Results
• Asian Fastener Imports Falter in February
• Bossard Acquisitions Boost Sales “Significantly”
• Grainger Reports “Challenging” Results
• Fastenal Reports Steady Sales Growth
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