Strong quarterly results drive double-digit share price gain
Shares of MSC Industrial Supply Co. (NYSE:MSM) climbed more than 10% in pre-market trading on Wednesday after the industrial distributor delivered third-quarter results that comfortably exceeded Wall Street expectations, supported by stronger operational execution.
For the fiscal third quarter ended May 30, 2026, the company reported adjusted earnings per share of $1.43, beating analyst forecasts of $1.26 by $0.17.
Revenue rose to $1.05 billion, ahead of the consensus estimate of $1.03 billion and up 7.8% from $971.1 million in the same period a year earlier.
Pricing and volume recovery support growth
MSC Industrial attributed the increase in revenue to the benefits of pricing actions and a return to volume growth during the quarter.
The stronger-than-expected financial performance, combined with improving operating metrics, helped fuel the sharp rally in the company’s shares.
Operating margins outperform guidance
Adjusted operating margin expanded by 160 basis points year over year to 10.6%, exceeding the upper end of the company’s previously issued guidance.
“Our fiscal third quarter results that exceeded expectations provide evidence that we are fundamentally doing more with less and taking the right steps,” said Martina McIsaac, President and Chief Executive Officer.
“Underpinning this improved performance was strength in the Core Customer, which continued to outperform the total company, and notable improvement in National Accounts.”
Company issues positive fourth-quarter outlook
Looking ahead to the fourth quarter of fiscal 2026, MSC Industrial expects average daily sales growth of between 6.5% and 8.5% compared with the prior year.
The company also forecast an adjusted operating margin in a range of 10.0% to 10.8%.
Greg Clark, Vice President and Interim Chief Financial Officer, said the business generated an incremental operating margin of 32% during the quarter, allowing higher sales to translate into earnings growth of more than 40% on a GAAP basis and more than 30% on an adjusted basis year over year.