The end of the earnings season is always a good time to take a step back and see who shined (and who not so much). Let’s take a look at how specialty equipment distributors stocks fared in Q2, starting with SiteOne (NYSE:SITE).
Historically, specialty equipment distributors have boasted deep selection and expertise in sometimes narrow areas like single-use packaging or unique lighting equipment. Additionally, the industry has evolved to include more automated industrial equipment and machinery over the last decade, driving efficiencies and enabling valuable data collection. Specialty equipment distributors whose offerings keep up with these trends can take share in a still-fragmented market, but like the broader industrials sector, this space is at the whim of economic cycles that impact the capital spending and manufacturing propelling industry volumes.
The 8 specialty equipment distributors stocks we track reported a strong Q2. As a group, revenues beat analysts’ consensus estimates by 2% while next quarter’s revenue guidance was 2.6% below.
In light of this news, share prices of the companies have held steady. On average, they are relatively unchanged since the latest earnings results.
SiteOne (NYSE:SITE)
Known for distributing John Deere tractors and LESCO turf care products, SiteOne Landscape Supply (NYSE:SITE) provides landscaping products and services to professionals, including irrigation, lighting, and nursery supplies.
SiteOne reported revenues of $1.46 billion, up 3.4% year on year. This print was in line with analysts’ expectations, and overall, it was a satisfactory quarter for the company with full-year EBITDA guidance exceeding analysts’ expectations but a slight miss of analysts’ organic revenue estimates.
“We are pleased to report continued solid results in the second quarter with 3% Net sales growth and 8% growth in Adjusted EBITDA1, despite softer end markets. We are executing our initiatives well, achieving excellent SG&A leverage, good gross margin improvement, and continuing to gain market share,” said Doug Black, SiteOne’s Chairman and CEO.
Interestingly, the stock is up 2.9% since reporting and currently trades at $132.30.
Is now the time to buy SiteOne? Access our full analysis of the earnings results here, it’s free.
Best Q2: Hudson Technologies (NASDAQ:HDSN)
Founded in 1991, Hudson Technologies (NASDAQ:HDSN) specializes in refrigerant services and solutions, providing refrigerant sales, reclamation, and recycling.
Hudson Technologies reported revenues of $72.85 million, down 3.2% year on year, outperforming analysts’ expectations by 1.7%. The business had a stunning quarter with a solid beat of analysts’ EPS estimates and an impressive beat of analysts’ EBITDA estimates.
The market seems happy with the results as the stock is up 15.4% since reporting. It currently trades at $9.59.
Is now the time to buy Hudson Technologies? Access our full analysis of the earnings results here, it’s free.
Weakest Q2: Karat Packaging (NASDAQ:KRT)
Founded as Lollicup, Karat Packaging (NASDAQ: KRT) distributes and manufactures environmentally-friendly disposable foodservice packaging solutions.
Karat Packaging reported revenues of $124 million, up 10.1% year on year, in line with analysts’ expectations. It was a slower quarter as it posted a significant miss of analysts’ EPS estimates and revenue guidance for next quarter missing analysts’ expectations.
As expected, the stock is down 6% since the results and currently trades at $25.06.
Read our full analysis of Karat Packaging’s results here.
Alta (NYSE:ALTG)
Founded in 1984, Alta Equipment Group (NYSE:ALTG) is a provider of industrial and construction equipment and services across the Midwest and Northeast United States.
Alta reported revenues of $481.2 million, down 1.4% year on year. This number beat analysts’ expectations by 0.6%. It was an exceptional quarter as it also logged a solid beat of analysts’ EPS estimates and a solid beat of analysts’ adjusted operating income estimates.
The stock is up 8.4% since reporting and currently trades at $7.74.
Read our full, actionable report on Alta here, it’s free.
United Rentals (NYSE:URI)
Owning the largest rental fleet in the world, United Rentals (NYSE:URI) provides equipment rental and related services to construction, industrial, and infrastructure industries.
United Rentals reported revenues of $3.94 billion, up 4.5% year on year. This result topped analysts’ expectations by 0.8%. Overall, it was a strong quarter as it also produced an impressive beat of analysts’ adjusted operating income estimates and full-year EBITDA guidance slightly topping analysts’ expectations.
The stock is up 7.6% since reporting and currently trades at $859.99.
Read our full, actionable report on United Rentals here, it’s free.
Market Update
As a result of the Fed’s rate hikes in 2022 and 2023, inflation has come down from frothy levels post-pandemic. The general rise in the price of goods and services is trending towards the Fed’s 2% goal as of late, which is good news. The higher rates that fought inflation also didn't slow economic activity enough to catalyze a recession. So far, soft landing. This, combined with recent rate cuts (half a percent in September 2024 and a quarter percent in November 2024) have led to strong stock market performance in 2024. The icing on the cake for 2024 returns was Donald Trump’s victory in the U.S. Presidential Election in early November, sending major indices to all-time highs in the week following the election. Still, debates around the health of the economy and the impact of potential tariffs and corporate tax cuts remain, leaving much uncertainty around 2025.
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