Fastenal Co. (Nasdaq: FAST), Winona, Minnesota, reported fourth-quarter sales of $1.4 billion, a 6.4% increase compared with same period a year ago. Quarterly profit was $196.1 million, a 9.7% increase compared to the year-ago period.

Fastenal said the 4Q increase was due to “higher unit sales of safety and janitorial products. Demand for these products was elevated relative to the fourth quarter of 2019 due to continued demand for personal protective equipment (PPE) and sanitizer products to mitigate the impact of the pandemic, support resumption of manufacturing and construction activity, and support sales to new customers. Growth of our product lines other than safety and janitorial, including fasteners, remained negative relative to the fourth quarter of 2019, but improved versus the third quarter of 2020 and through the fourth quarter of 2020, during which we continued to see gradual sequential improvement in general business activity.”

In the quarter, daily sales of fastener products declined 2.3% over the fourth quarter of 2019 and represented 30.8% of Fastenal’s net sales in the period, down from representing 33.6% of net sales in 4Q 2019. Daily sales of safety products grew 34.6% over the year-ago period and represented 23.5% of net sales in the fourth quarter of 2020, up from representing 18.7% of net sales in 4Q 2019. Daily sales of other products grew 2.1% over the year-ago quarter and represented 45.7% of our net sales in 4Q 2020, down from representing 47.7% of net sales in 4Q 2019.

Sales for the full year of 2020 were $5.6 billion, a 5.9% increase compared with 2019. Profit for the year increased 8.6% to $859.1 million.

December sales increased 14.7% to $428.8 million over the year-ago period. The company reported daily sales of $20.4 million, up 9.3% versus a year ago.

Look for more on Fastenal’s quarterly and yearly performance on the MDM blog.

Photo courtesy Fastenal Co.