Fastenal Beats Revenue Estimates In Q1 But Margins Narrow As Costs Rise

Fastenal Co. (NASDAQ:FAST) on Friday reported first-quarter 2025 revenue of $1.959 billion, a 3.4% year-over-year increase and slightly above the $1.95 billion consensus estimate. Adjusting for one less selling day and the absence of Good Friday in March, net daily sales grew 5.0%.

Foreign exchange rates reduced sales by around 50 basis points, unlike the minimal impact in 2024. Unit sales increased, driven by more customer sites spending over $10K monthly and modest growth in average sales per site.

Weighted FASTBin/FASTVend signings fell 4.6% YoY to 6,418; Weighted FASTBin/FASTVend installations rose 12.4% YoY to 129,996.

Related: Top Wall Street Forecasters Revamp Fastenal Price Expectations Ahead Of Q1 Earnings

In the first quarter, FAST's Digital Footprint represented 61% of sales, an increase from 59.2% a year earlier. The company also reported a 2.4% increase in customer sites, generating over $10,000 in monthly sales and 6.9% growth in Onsite-like locations. These high-value sites contributed 80.7% of total sales, up from 78.9% in Q1 2024.

The gross margin contracted to 45.1% from 45.5% in the prior-year quarter, primarily due to a lower-margin customer/product mix and higher transport costs, partly offset by increased supplier incentives.

Operating income was $393.9 million, down 0.9%, and the margin was 20.1%, a decline from 20.6% last year.

The company reported first-quarter earnings per share of 52 cents, matching analyst expectations.

Fastenal's operating cash flow for the quarter was $262.2 million, a decrease of 21.8% year over year. The company held cash and equivalents of $231.8 million as the end of March.

The company returned $246.7 million in dividends during the quarter, up from $223.2 million last year, with no stock buybacks in either period. Total debt remained at $200 million, representing 5.1% of total capital, slightly down from 5.5% a year ago.

Fastenal signed 6,418 weighted FASTBin and FASTVend devices in Q1 2025. The company maintains its full-year target of 28,000 to 30,000 MEUs.

Full-year capex is expected between $265–$285 million, rising from $214.1 million in 2024 due to higher distribution, IT, and FMI spending.

Dividend: Fastenal declared a second-quarter cash dividend of $0.44 per share, payable on May 23 to shareholders of record as of April 25—up one cent from the first quarter.

Price Action: FAST shares were trading higher by 3.49% at $78.44 at the last check Friday.

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Photo: Shutterstock/T. Schneider