Record First-Quarter Sales and Organic Growth
Consolidated sales of $1.2072 billion, up 5.8% as reported and up 3.4% organically — the highest first-quarter sales ever and the second-highest quarterly sales in company history.
Earnings Per Share and Net Income Increase
Net earnings of $247.0 million and diluted EPS of $4.69, up $0.18 from prior-year EPS of $4.51, reflecting broad gains across the business.
Improved Consolidated Operating Earnings
Consolidated operating earnings of $318.8 million versus $313.4 million a year ago; OpCo operating income (before Financial Services) rose to $250.8 million from $243.1 million.
Commercial & Industrial (C&I) Strong Growth
C&I sales of $381.6 million, up $37.1 million (10.8% as reported) and up 7.1% organically, with broad gains led by Industrial and strong double-digit growth in aviation; C&I operating income increased to $54.9 million.
Tools Group Margin and Profitability Improvement
Tools Group sales of $480.0 million (vs. $462.9M) with organic sales up 3.4%; gross margin improved 140 basis points to 47.7%; operating income rose to $105.0 million and operating margin expanded 160 basis points to 21.6%.
RS&I Highest-Ever First-Quarter Sales; Margin Resilience
RS&I recorded $485.3 million in sales — the highest-ever first-quarter sales for the group — with gross margin up 30 basis points to 46.0% despite currency and tariff headwinds.
New Product Launches and Innovation
Notable product introductions and technology investments included StreamLab (Mitchell 1), new cordless ratchets (CTR887/CTR881), nano power driver (CTNN22040), glow-plug socket (IPSTML12), compact socket set (119NTMLE), KRSC46 roll cart and the commemorative 84-inch EPIQ ‘Tribute to America’ box — supporting the pivot to shorter-payback, high-demand items.
Strategic Investments in Data/AI and Proprietary Databases
Continued investment in software, diagnostics and large language models to expand and accelerate proprietary datasets and search capabilities — intended to strengthen long-term competitive advantages.
Healthy Balance Sheet and Capital Actions
Quarter-end cash of $1.7533 billion, >$900 million available under credit facilities, $126.8 million in dividends, $99.9 million share repurchase (267k shares) with $234.1 million remaining buyback authorization; FY capex guide ~ $100 million.
Credit/Portfolio Metrics Stable or Improving
Gross finance receivables ~ $2.5 billion; U.S. 60+-day delinquency rate of 1.9% (down 10 bps YoY); trailing 12-month net losses of $72.9 million (3.75% of outstandings); average yields on finance and contract receivables stable.