Fastenal reports 9% YoY increase for Q1
Fastenal Company, a wholesale distributor of industrial and construction supplies, reported a net sales increase of 9.1% in the first quarter of 2023 compared to the first quarter of 2022. Net sales for the quarter were $1.8 billion.
Higher unit sales in Q1-23 – which contributed to the increase in net sales in the period – was due to further growth in underlying demand in markets tied to industrial capital goods and commodities, which more than offset a modest contraction for construction supplies.
Foreign exchange negatively affected sales in the first quarter of 2023 by approximately 70 basis points, while adverse weather impacts in February 2023 negatively affected sales in the first quarter of 2023 by 20 to 40 basis points.
The impact of product pricing on net sales in the first quarter of 2023 was 290–320 basis points compared to the first quarter of 2022. The increase reflects carryover from broad pricing actions taken in the prior year designed to mitigate marketplace inflation for Fastenal's products and services; it also attributes targeted actions in the first quarter of 2023 intended to address gross margin pressure for its non-fastener and non-safety products. Spot prices in the marketplace for many inputs remained below prior-year levels, though in many cases they were at or above levels experienced in the fourth quarter of 2022.
The company said the combination of good demand, more stable cost trends, and Fastenal's long supply chain for imported fasteners and certain non-fastener products produced stable price levels for its products. The impact of product pricing on net sales in the first quarter of 2022 was 580–610 basis points.
From a product standpoint, we have three categories: fasteners, safety supplies, and other product lines, the latter of which includes eight smaller product categories, such as tools, janitorial supplies, and cutting tools. The DSR change when compared to the same period in the prior year and the percent of sales in the period were as follows:
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