Kelly Cloonan
Fastenal reported higher quarterly profit and revenue as it continued to notch more business with its larger customers.
However, the fastener-and-tool distributor spent more on property and equipment in the quarter than it did a year earlier, with investments in facility construction and upgrades, industrial vending equipment and information technology.
The company said it continues to expect to invest more in property and equipment this year.
The stock fell 4.9%, to $48.93, in premarket trading on Wednesday. Shares were up 28% year to date at Tuesday's market close.
Third-quarter profit came in at $401.6 million, or 35 cents a share, compared with $335.5 million, or 29 cents a share, a year earlier. Analysts polled by FactSet had expected earnings of 34 cents a share.
Sales climbed about 15% to $2.46 billion, compared with analyst estimates of $2.44 billion.
Fastenal said further business with its larger customers, higher prices and broad-based demand across its core end markets drove the overall top-line growth.
The company continues to expect its investment in property and equipment to rise this year, factoring in increased spending on IT and trucking as well as efforts to replace a facility in Atlanta.
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