October 2006

MSC Industrial Direct, Inc., Melville, NY, distributor of MRO supplies to industrial customers in the U.S., reported sales for the fiscal 2006 were $1.32 billion, a 19.8% increase over fiscal 2005. Profit was $136.4 million, an increase of 21.5%. Results are for fiscal year 2006 ended Aug. 26, 2006.Net sales for the fourth quarter were […]

WESCO International Inc., distributor of electrical MRO products and construction materials, sales were $1,343 million in the third quarter 2006, an increase of 18.7% from the prior-year period. Profit was $59.4 million, versus $25 million last year. Sales for the nine months ended Sept. 30, 2006, were $3,945 million, a 23.9% increase from last year. Sales

DXP Enterprises, Inc., has acquired Gulf Coast Torch & Regulator, Inc., a full-service distributor of welding supplies in Houston, TX, for $5.5 million and $0.2 million in debt.  The unaudited sales and EBITDA for the acquired business for the nine months ending Sept. 30, 2006 were $13.2 million and $850,000, respectively.  DXP also recently acquired

Genuine Parts Company, Atlanta, GA, reported sales increased 6% to $2.7 billion for the third quarter ended Sept. 30, 2006. Net income was $121.3 million, an increase of 9% from the same period a year ago.For the nine months ended Sept. 30, 2006, sales totaled $7.9 billion, up 7% compared to the same period in

Privately-owned housing starts in September were at a seasonally adjusted annual rate of 1,772,000. This is 5.9% above the revised August estimate of 1,674,000, but is 17.9% below the September 2005 rate of 2,158,000. Single-family housing starts in September were at a rate of 1,426,000; this is 4.3% above the August figure of 1,367,000. The

The Fastenal Company, Winona, MN, had sales of $470 million in the third quarter ended Sept. 30, 2006, an increase of 16.9% over the same period in 2005. Profit increased 17.8% to $54.1 million. Sales for the first nine months totaled $1.36 billion, an increase of 19.4% over the same period in 2005. Profit increased 20.2%

Praxair Distribution Inc., a subsidiary of Praxair, Inc., Danbury, CT, has acquired Hobart Industrial Gases of Fort Wayne, IN. Since 1956, Hobart Industrial Gases has supplied a wide array of packaged industrial, medical and specialty gases, welding equipment, supplies and services to Indiana and Ohio. “This acquisition provides a great opportunity to integrate the strengths and

quarter of 2006 after surging at a 29.6-percent SAAR in the second quarter of 2006. Crude goodsThe Producer Price Index for Crude Materials for Further Processing fell 3.4% in September following a 2.2-percent increase in August. Prices for crude energy materials turned down after rising in the previous month. Conversely, the basic industrial materials index

percentage point above its 1972-2005 average. By stage of process, the operating rate for industries at the crude stage climbed 0.2 percentage point, to 89.0%. In contrast, the operating rate for industries at the primary and semifinished stages fell 1 percentage point, to 82.6%, just 0.5 percentage point above the long-run average for this group.

Diversified industrial manufacturer Eaton Corporation, Cleveland, OH, sales for the third quarter 2006 were up 13% from the same period a year ago. Sales were $3.12 billion. Net income rose 25% to $248 million.‘We expect the growth rate in our overall end markets to weaken slightly in the fourth quarter, id=bwanpa11>’ said Chairman and CEO

2005 third quarter. On a daily sales basis, sales were up 9%. The acquisition of the business of Rand Materials Handling Equipment Co. in January 2006 contributed 4 percentage points to the sales growth. Operating earnings were flat for the 2006 third quarter. A lower gross profit margin on Rand’s product sales, higher integration and media

DXP Enterprises, Inc., Houston, TX, has acquired Safety International, Odessa, TX, for $2.2 million in cash and approximately $.5 million worth of debt. The company provides safety and environmental consulting and training services as well as safety equipment sales, service and rental. The acquired business has operated since 1963. The deal was funded under DXP’s

RBS Global, Inc., the parent company of Rexnord Corporation, will acquire the plumbing products business of Jacuzzi Brands, Inc. for $950 million in cash.  Rexnord anticipates the purchase price will be financed through an equity investment by private equity firm Apollo Management and its affiliates of $290 million and debt financing of approximately $660 million.

>UK-based Wolseley plc, parent to Ferguson and Stock Building Supply, and global distributor of plumbing and heating products and building materials, has made four more bolt-on acquisitions, expected to add about $278.24 million (148 million) in additional revenue.>North America>Ferguson> has acquired Lawrence Plumbing Supply Co. and Castle Supply Company Inc. and Castle North Corporation (Castle

Three independent distributors have decided to open a branch together. The three-in-one approach will give their customers more products in one location and makes the niche distributors more competitive and attractive to vendors. The branch will open in November.Three independent distributors in central Pennsylvania APR Supply (HVAC/plumbing), Industrial Piping Systems (pipe, valves & fittings) and

2006, experience a 0.5 percent gain during the fourth quarter, and then a 1.5 percent gain through the first and second quarters of 2007. As China allows for more currency flexibility and as the new Mexican government builds credibility in the wake of a tense post-election period, MAPI expects the dollar to fall modestly by

Dr. Daniel Thorniley, senior global consultant of the Economist Corporate Network in Vienna, Austria, presented Global Business Outlook” at the recent European Power Transmission Distributors Association annual meeting in Austria. Thorniley is a senior consultant to about 250 corporations including Dow, Dupont, Glaxo SmithKline, Henkel and SKF. Some of the more interesting observations gleaned by

SalesAugust 2006 sales of merchant wholesalers, except manufacturers’ sales branches and offices, after adjustment for seasonal variations and trading-day differences but not for price changes, were $335.6 billion, up 1.1 percent from the revised July level and were up 12.5 percent from the August 2005 level.  The July preliminary estimate was revised upward $0.2 billion

in August was estimated at a seasonally adjusted annual rate of $1,200.7 billion, 0.3 percent above the revised July estimate of $1,196.8 billion. The August figure is 4.4 percent above the August 2005 estimate of $1,150.3 billion. During the first eight months of this year, construction spending amounted to $793.2 billion, 7.2% above the $739.9