General Industrial Machinery Stocks Q4 Teardown: L.B. Foster (NASDAQ:FSTR) Vs The Rest

Earnings results often indicate what direction a company will take in the months ahead. With Q4 behind us, let’s have a look at L.B. Foster (NASDAQ:FSTR) and its peers.

Automation that increases efficiency and connected equipment that collects analyzable data have been trending, creating new demand for general industrial machinery companies. Those who innovate and create digitized solutions can spur sales and speed up replacement cycles, but all general industrial machinery companies are still at the whim of economic cycles. Consumer spending and interest rates, for example, can greatly impact the industrial production that drives demand for these companies’ offerings.

The 14 general industrial machinery stocks we track reported a slower Q4. As a group, revenues beat analysts’ consensus estimates by 2.6% while next quarter’s revenue guidance was 2.5% below.

Amidst this news, share prices of the companies have had a rough stretch. On average, they are down 8.2% since the latest earnings results.

L.B. Foster (NASDAQ:FSTR)

Founded with a $2,500 loan, L.B. Foster (NASDAQ:FSTR) is a provider of products and services for the transportation and energy infrastructure sectors, including rail products, construction materials, and coating solutions.

L.B. Foster reported revenues of $128.2 million, down 5% year on year. This print fell short of analysts’ expectations by 2%. Overall, it was a softer quarter for the company with a significant miss of analysts’ EBITDA and EPS estimates.

The stock is down 17.7% since reporting and currently trades at $21.29.

Read our full report on L.B. Foster here, it’s free.

Best Q4: GE Aerospace (NYSE:GE)

One of the original 12 companies on the Dow Jones Industrial Average, General Electric (NYSE:GE) is a multinational conglomerate providing technologies for various sectors including aviation, power, renewable energy, and healthcare.

GE Aerospace reported revenues of $10.81 billion, up 14.3% year on year, outperforming analysts’ expectations by 13.7%. The business had a stunning quarter with a solid beat of analysts’ EPS estimates and an impressive beat of analysts’ EBITDA estimates.

GE Aerospace scored the fastest revenue growth among its peers. The market seems happy with the results as the stock is up 9.8% since reporting. It currently trades at $206.73.

Is now the time to buy GE Aerospace? Access our full analysis of the earnings results here, it’s free.

Weakest Q4: Albany (NYSE:AIN)

Founded in 1895, Albany (NYSE:AIN) is a global textiles and materials processing company, specializing in machine clothing for paper mills and engineered composite structures for aerospace and other industries.

Albany reported revenues of $286.9 million, down 11.3% year on year, falling short of analysts’ expectations by 4.2%. It was a disappointing quarter as it posted full-year revenue guidance missing analysts’ expectations.

Albany delivered the slowest revenue growth in the group. As expected, the stock is down 8.7% since the results and currently trades at $72.01.

Read our full analysis of Albany’s results here.

Kadant (NYSE:KAI)

Headquartered in Massachusetts, Kadant (NYSE:KAI) is a global supplier of high-value, critical components and engineered systems used in process industries worldwide.

Kadant reported revenues of $258 million, up 8.1% year on year. This result met analysts’ expectations. More broadly, it was a slower quarter as it produced full-year EPS guidance missing analysts’ expectations.

The stock is down 4.8% since reporting and currently trades at $339.01.

Read our full, actionable report on Kadant here, it’s free.

3M (NYSE:MMM)

Producers of the first asthma inhaler, 3M Company (NYSE:MMM) is a global conglomerate known for products in industries like healthcare, safety, electronics, and consumer goods.

3M reported revenues of $6.01 billion, flat year on year. This number beat analysts’ expectations by 4.5%. Zooming out, it was a satisfactory quarter as it also logged a decent beat of analysts’ EPS estimates but a significant miss of analysts’ EBITDA estimates.

The stock is up 7.5% since reporting and currently trades at $151.60.

Read our full, actionable report on 3M here, it’s free.

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