Fastenal's Profits Rise, but Its Core Business Still Hasn't Rebounded

Industrial supply giant Fastenal (NASDAQ: FAST) released its fourth-quarter and full-year 2020 earnings on Wednesday, and in many ways, the quarter and the year collectively represented a success: Revenue and earnings rose over both time periods despite slackening customer demand for fastening and other manufacturing supplies during the pandemic. At what point will creative revenue solutions start to fade, and how long will it take for the manufacturing sector (which has lagged technology, healthcare, and other sectors) to stage an economic recovery? Fastenal achieved a fourth-quarter revenue increase of 6.4% over the prior-year quarter, to $1.36 billion.