Those Earnings Calls Better Be Upbeat
There won't be as many surprises in industrial companies’ third-quarter numbers, so pay attention to what CEOs say about 2021 and their spending plans.
Investors are positioning for a manufacturing rebound and they want to hear it’s underway.
Photographer: Eric Piermont/AFP via Getty Images
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It feels like just yesterday that companies were reporting their second-quarter earnings, but somehow the next batch of numbers is already upon us. Fastenal Co., a distributor of industrial odds and ends for the factory floor, is one of the first companies out of the gate next week and its results can often be a harbinger of what’s to come as the rest of the results roll in later in the month. In general, it feels like the manufacturing economy has stabilized and may be on the mend. There have been a number of positive updates over the past few months from companies including Fortive Corp., Stanley Black & Decker Inc., Dover Corp. and Gates Industrial Corp. These are the kinds of companies you’d expect to see at the forefront of a rebound because their production cycles are shorter, allow them to respond more quickly to an uptick in demand, and they have tie-ins in to the more resilient consumer economy.