Heating, Air-conditioning & Refrigeration Distributors International (HARDI), Columbus, Ohio, released its monthly TRENDS report on Tuesday, which showed the average sales performance by HARDI distributors increased 22.1% in June.

“Sales this month is being compared to a gain of 24.3% last year, so this is a very strong report, and the dollar weighted sales growth is comparable,” said HARDI Market Research & Benchmarking Analyst Brian Loftus.

The average annual sales growth for the 12 months through June 2021 was 17.2%, which was down slightly from the 17.6% record rate through May.

“This high-teens growth rate reflects the easy comparisons last year, the reinvestment in housing that included higher replacement activity, and the 20%-plus gains for single unit permits across our seven economic regions,” said Loftus. “Prices go up when demand increases and that should help keep the annual sales growth in double-digit territory for the balance of the year.”

The Days Sales Outstanding (DSO), which is a measure of how quickly customers pay their bills, was 39 days at the end of June 2021.

“The DSO has been faster than normal thanks to the aggressive policies to support the economy during the COVID related disruptions, but that benefit is waning,” said Loftus. “Bills were being paid seven to eight days quicker recently, but that benefit is now less than three days better than normal.”