Fastenal Co., Winona, Minn., saw its net sales for the three-month period ended June 30 decrease of 21.4 percent from net sales of $604.2 million in second-quarter 2008. Net sales for the six-month period ended June 30, 2009 totaled $964.million, a decrease of 17.6 percent from net sales of $1.2 billion in the first six months of 2008. The company’s net earnings decreased from $76.2 million in the second quarter of 2008 to $43.53 million in the second quarter of 2009, a decrease of 42.8 percent. During the first six months of 2009, Fastenal opened 42 new stores and now has 2,353 locations.
A company statement included in its second-quarter financial statement said, “As we saw in the previous two quarters, the weakened economy continues to have a substantial impact on our business. These impacts continue to negatively affect our sales, particularly related to our industrial production business and, more recently, our non-residential construction business. The remaining business (sales to other resellers, government business, other industries, and in-store retail sales) is producing better results, but unfortunately, doesn’t have enough impact to offset the manufacturing and construction impact.”