Greetings. Welcome to Fastenal's 2026 Third Quarter Earnings Results Conference Call. At this time, all participants are in listen-only mode. The question and answer session will follow the formal presentation. If anyone today should require operator assistance, please press star zero from your telephone keypad. Please note that today's conference is being recorded. At this time, I'll now turn the conference over to Dray Schreiber. Thank you, Dray. You may begin.

Welcome to the Fastenal Company 2026 Third Quarter Earnings Conference Call. This call will be hosted by Jeff Watts, our President and Chief Executive Officer, and Max Tunnicliff, our Chief Financial Officer. The call will start with a general overview of our quarterly results and operations, with the remainder of the time being open for questions and answers. Today's conference call is a proprietary Fastenal presentation and is being recorded by Fastenal. No recording, reproduction, transmission, or distribution of today's call is permitted without Fastenal's consent. This call is being audio simulcast on the internet via the Fastenal Investor Relations homepage, investor.fastenal.com. A replay of the webcast will be available on the website until December 1st, 2026 at midnight central time. As a reminder, today's conference call may include statements regarding the company's future plans and prospects. These statements are based on our current expectations and we undertake no duty to update them. It is important to note that the company's actual results may differ materially from those anticipated. Factors that could cause actual results to differ from anticipated results are contained in the company's latest earnings release and periodic filings with the Securities and Exchange Commission, and we encourage you to review those factors carefully. I would now like to turn the call over to Mr. Jeff Watts.

Thank you, Dray. Good morning, everyone, and welcome to Fastenal's third quarter 2026 earnings call. I'm Jeff Watts, Fastenal's Chief Executive Officer, and I appreciate you joining us all today. Also with me this morning is Max Tunnicliff, our Chief Financial Officer. Before we get into the quarter, I would like to recognize our Blue Team. Every result we report today was earned by people in our branches, our onsites, our distribution centers, our trucks, and our support teams. They show up every day for our customers. They solve problems, and they keep finding better ways to help our customers run their operations. So to the Blue Team, thank you. This was a very strong quarter and one you should all be very proud of. Now, two quick housekeeping items before we get to the numbers. First, our slides look different this quarter. We've refreshed the format of the investor presentation to make the story easier to follow. The flow now goes from highlights to our objectives to what drove sales, financial results, and then some key takeaways. I want to be clear about what we didn't change. Our definitions are the same and our historical data is the same. The supporting detail you relied on is all still there. The sum of it is simply moved to the appendix. The first page of the appendix shows exactly what moved and where to find it. And second, we're targeting a 45-minute call today. We expect to keep the Q&A portion broadly consistent, take about the same number of questions as usual. Now onto the quarter. And for me, I think the headline's pretty simple. Sales grew 15.5%, earnings grew faster than sales. Our net sales were $2.46 billion, up $330 million from last year. Operating margin was 21.5, up 90 basis points, and our return on invested capital reached 32.5, up 230 basis points. Operating income increased by $90 million from last year. That's the largest year-over-year increase in a single quarter in Fastenal's history. But I think the three things that really stood out to me or stand out to me and drove the quarter, first, growth accelerated. Now, second, we converted that growth into higher operating margin and faster earnings growth. And third, the quarter was driven mainly by market share gains through our key account strategy and new contract wins. Now, on to slide five, and this really brings us back to our three strategic objectives. Now, these are the same pillars we've discussed before, and everything we do ties back to them. Now, first being the increasing sales effectiveness. We're gaining share with larger customers through our key account strategy and new contract wins. and you can see that in our daily sales growth and in the growth of our largest customer sites. On the services, we continue to grow our FMI installed base. Our fast bin and fast bend technology, our digital footprint, now these tools improve the customer experience, they strengthen retention and make both our customers and our own operations much more efficient. And then lastly, expanding our TAM. Now we continue to reach revenue that we serve today through new products. New geographies, new business models, and new services. You can follow our international and non-fastener growth in our monthly sales releases. And really, the strategy is consistent. What changes quarter to quarter is the evidence. And this quarter, I believe the evidence was strong. Now, on to slide six and what really drove our sales. Now, our customer site data continues to show progress with our larger customers, both new and existing, all growing with us. Our contract count increased 6.4% from last year, with signings weighted toward multi-site national accounts. The number of sites spending $50K or more per month with us grew almost 19%, from approximately 2,800 to roughly 3,300, and sales from those sites increased roughly 28%. Contract customers now represent over 76% of sales, and their daily sales grew 18.8%. Pricing did contribute for the quarter approximately 2.4% to growth. That's a slower pace than earlier in the year because the year-over-year pricing contribution peaked between fourth quarter of 25 and first quarter of 26. We're now lapping some of the strongest pricing actions taken in 25. Marketing conditions did improve in the first half, and that improvement continued in the third quarter, but our growth exceeded the growth rates in the industrial markets that we served. To me, that's the clearest signal that we're taking share. On to slide seven, our digital footprint was 61.4% of sales, and digital sales grew approximately 16% on a daily basis, faster than the company overall. When customers transact digitally, orders are more accurate, there's less manual work on both sides, and the relationship becomes much more integrated. We sign approximately 7,500 weighted FMI devices in the quarter, or about 117 per day compared with 110 per day last year. And our install base passed 143,000 units, up 7%, and sales through FastBin and FastBin grew approximately 18%. We continue to expect 27,000 to 29,000 weighted device settings for the full year. We really believe that that opportunity for us, it's clear. We need to keep moving customers toward technology-enabled replenishment because it improves service It strengthens a relationship and it creates efficiency for both sides. Now on to slide eight, and this is a little different from the past, but from time to time we'll show you a real example of how we win because I think it tells our story better than any statistic ever could. So today I want to take a couple of minutes to highlight our customer strategy and action and show how we identify a customer challenge and bring our supply chain capabilities to life. In this example, we had a new customer that was experiencing direct material stockouts, supply chain shortages, and limited control over product consumption. As their business grew, those challenges became even more significant. So after we signed the contract, we got to work. Our Lean Six Sigma specialists, they mapped the process, identified the root cause, which was a manual inconsistent system with limited automation, limited digital visibility, and physical organization. From there, we developed a roadmap to modernize their supply chain and once approved, our team moved quickly. As you can see on slide nine, we reorganized their crib and storage areas for the direct materials. We installed clearly labeled barcoded bins, deployed our FMI technology, established planograms, and connected the customer to FAST360 to really provide greater visibility across their facility. We also established KPIs to measure ongoing performance. and the results are significant. Digital visibility increased from 0% to 99%. Replenishment is now automated, stock outs have been eliminated, inventory has been reduced and employees spend less time searching and walking for product. Over time we expect the solution to generate anywhere between 25 to 30% in overall cost savings. But I do want to emphasize that this is only the beginning. As we learn more about their operation and deepen the relationship Our local teams and industry specialists are going to continue to bring new products, new technology, new systems, and saving opportunities to the customer. Now that's the power of our model. The initial investment creates value, that value builds trust, and that trust creates opportunities to expand the relationship. Over time, those benefits compound for not only the customer, but for Fastenal as well. With that, I'll turn it over to Max to walk through the financial results.

Thank you Jeff, and good morning everyone. Overall, this was a very strong quarter. Demand improved, we continued to gain share, and management of our expenses helped us turn that growth into higher operating margins and earnings. Sales grew 15.5% while operating earnings and earnings per share grew roughly 20%. I'll start with the business and market trends on slide 10. Industrial conditions improved further in the third quarter. U.S. manufacturing PMI averaged nearly 55. and industrial production for our key end markets remained positive. This is consistent with the gradual improvement we've seen since late last year. Although momentum remains stronger in select industrial markets than in the traditional manufacturing and automotive area. Our daily sales grew, improved to 15 and a half percent from 14.7 in the second quarter. The improvement was driven primarily by new customer wins, greater share of spending with existing customers, and improving industrial activity. Customer demand remained healthy overall. What we heard from the field was consistent with our results. Growth opportunities were strongest in data centers and other high demand markets while softness remained concentrated in a smaller number of areas. The slide shows how broad the improvement was. Heavy manufacturing led the way again. It represented approximately 45% of sales and daily sales grew approximately 20%. Growth was strongest in key accounts, machined products, aerospace, and industrial equipment. Other manufacturing grew approximately 13%, showing that the improvement extended beyond the largest accounts and strongest verticals. Construction and other non-manufacturing markets also contributed. Non-residential construction continued to grow, supported by infrastructure, electrical and utility activity, while transportation and reseller customers also posted solid gains. By material type, direct materials increased approximately 19% compared with approximately 14% in indirect materials. This reflected stronger customer production activity, large customer signings, improved product availability, and pricing actions. Several higher growth product categories also outpaced the company overall, particularly electrical, tools, and other industrial products. To summarize, industrial activity improved during the quarter, but our growth continued to significantly outpace the market. The common thread was our continued progress with larger customers, reflecting ongoing share gains from our key account strategy, new contract wins, and embedded supply solutions. Turning to the financial results on slide 11, the key message is that we converted strong sales growth into higher operating margin and earnings. Operating margin increased 90 basis points to 21.5%. As 130 basis points of SG&A leverage more than offset a 40 BIP decline in gross margin. Gross margin was approximately 45%, down 40 basis points from last year, but 20 basis points above second quarter. Customer mix remained the primary year-over-year headwind, consistent with our strategy. Beyond mix, two items weren't discussed in this quarter. Price cost, which we will continue to address until we return to neutrality, and favorable items that benefited the quarter but may not continue at the same level in the underlying rate. First, customer mix is approximately a 50 basis point headwind, reflecting growth with large customers and continued execution of our strategy. This mixed pressure reflects the continued success of our larger customer strategy. These customers generally carry lower gross margins, but their higher volumes and more efficient service models support attractive operating margins and incremental operating profit. Price cost was approximately a 30 basis point headwind, improving approximately 10 basis points from the second quarter, marking another quarter of sequential improvement. The year over year pricing contribution is slowing after peaking between the fourth quarter of 25 and the first quarter of 26. We will continue to report on price cost while it remains a headwind. and we remain focused on disciplined pricing in returning to neutrality. Favorable items added approximately 40 basis points to gross margin, including direct sourcing savings, supplier rebates and tariff refunds. About 20 basis points of this 40 reflect timing across these items and should not be assumed to continue in the underlying gross margin run rate. SG&A provided 130 basis points of leverage, reflecting expense growth Well below sales growth. Employee costs improved by 90 basis points as a percentage of sales, while total full-time equivalent headcount increased less than 1%. This reflects productivity, role specialization, and the benefits of technology and automation. Occupancy costs improved by approximately 50 basis points as higher sales were spread across our existing branch, on-site, and distribution network. All other SG&A increased slightly as a percent of sales, reflecting continued investment in tech, analytics, supply chain, and sales support. In total, SG&A leverage expanded operating margin by 90 basis points to 21.5%. This demonstrates how we are executing our strategy, using our infrastructure, tech, and digital capabilities to scale effectively and efficiently while continuing to invest for growth. Return on invested capital increased 230 basis points to 32.5 on a trailing 12-month basis, comparing that with a 10-year average of approximately 28%. The improvement reflects stronger operating earnings and continued discipline in working capital and capital spending. Overall, the quarter demonstrates that we can grow with larger and more complex customers while continuing to invest in the business and improve operating margins and returns. Turning to cash flow and capital discipline on slide 12, operating cash flow was approximately $422 million, or 105% of net income. The year-over-year conversion was lower primarily because receivables increased with strong sales growth, particularly with larger customers who generally carry longer payment terms. Inventory increased approximately 3% over the past year, well above the growth in sales, while product availability remained high. That performance reflects more disciplined inventory positioning and better use of the inventory already in our network. Accounts payable increased as purchasing rose to support growth. Free cash flow is approximately 350 million or 87% of net income, providing capacity to fund growth investments and return capital to shareholders. Third quarter capital spending was approximately 72 million or 2.9% of sales. Spending was directed primarily toward hub Thank you for joining us today. of which was through dividends and 30 million through share repurchases. Together, that represented nearly 82% of net income. Over the trailing 12 months, we returned approximately 1.2 billion after funding our operating and capital needs. Our approach to capital is unchanged. We invest in the business where we see strong returns, return excess cash to shareholders, and keep a conservative balance sheet. So overall, we delivered strong growth. expanded margins and generated healthy cash flow while continuing to invest for the future. The quarter reflects disciplined execution across the business. With that, I'll turn it back to Jeff for the key takeaways.

Thanks, Max. Before we open the line, I think I just want to leave everyone with three points. The first, our growth was broad-based, reflecting share gains across large accounts and embedded supply solutions. Second, we converted that growth into higher operating margin and earnings, while price-cost improved sequentially for the second consecutive quarter. And third, our model is compounding. New customer wins create embedded spend, technology deepens those relationships, and our scale allows us to grow profitably while continuing to invest. This quarter demonstrates the strength of our strategy. We gained share, expanded margins, generated strong cash flow, and improved returns. and I think I'll close where I started with our people. Now this business is, it's always been built one customer and one relationship at a time by a blue team that takes ownership. And I'm very excited about where we're headed. With that operator, I think we're ready for questions.

Thank you. We'll now be conducting a question and answer session. If you'd like to ask a question at this time, please press star one from your telephone keypad and a confirmation tone to indicate your line is in the question queue. You may press star two if you'd like to remove your question from the queue. For participants using speaker equipment, it may be necessary to pick up your handset before pressing the star keys. Thank you, and our first question today comes from the line of David Manthe with Baird. Please receive your questions.

Yeah, hi, good morning. A two-part question on gross margins. First off, number one, the 20 basis points of timing Could you give us your definition of timing? Is that catching up for past accruals or is it pulling benefits from the fourth quarter back into the third quarter? And then second, if fuel prices stay at current levels, is it possible that the 30 basis point price cost gap actually gets larger in the fourth quarter? Those two questions, please.

Ladies and gentlemen, please stand by. We're experiencing technical difficulties. We'll resume momentarily. Thank you.

Dave, you there?

Hi, ladies and gentlemen. Thank you for standing by. Please go ahead, sir.

Sorry about that, Dave and company. Jeff told me I got to take accountability because it was me. I hit the wrong button trying to unmute ourselves. So I apologize. It wasn't a question. Not trying to burn time. Okay, Dave, two-part question. First of all, you asked about the bips of timing. Yeah, let me define that. Just candidly, part of that and roughly half of that was tariff refunds. very immaterial, but we don't see