MSC INDUSTRIAL DIRECT CO INC
For the period ended Mar 1, 2025. Filed Apr 3, 2025.
View on SEC.govAbout this filing
A company's report for each of its first three quarters. The financial statements are not audited. It shows how the business has moved since the last annual report, and what management says changed.
Mar 1, 2025 · Filed Apr 3, 2025
What changed in Management’s Discussion and Analysis?
Read the current filingPrevious report: 10-Q
Period ended 2024-11-30; filed 2025-01-08.
0001003078-25-000007
Item 2. Management’s Discussion and Analysis of Financial Condition and Results of OperationsCurrent report: 10-Q
Period ended 2025-03-01; filed 2025-04-03.
0001003078-25-000047
Item 2. Management’s Discussion and Analysis of Financial Condition and Results of OperationsThe baseline is this issuer’s latest earlier reporting period of the same form that was filed before the current report. A previous 10-Q is a different quarter, not a year-over-year comparison. Amendments are excluded.
Compared 86 previous paragraphs and 113 current paragraphs.
52 unchanged; 32 reworded; 19 added; 2 removed; 0 previous and 10 current paragraphs rearranged.
Tables are not compared: 6 previous and 8 current tables excluded. Dates, whitespace, punctuation and numbering changes are ignored; changes to financial figures remain significant.
A changed paragraph is not evidence that risk increased or decreased. An unchanged paragraph does not establish that risk stayed the same.
Added paragraphs (19)
Current report
Freight expense was $35.8 million for the thirteen-week period ended March 1, 2025, as compared to $36.5 million for the same period in the prior fiscal year.
Current report
We incurred $1.4 million in Restructuring and other costs for the thirteen-week period ended March 1, 2025, as compared to $6.2 million for the same period in the prior fiscal year. Restructuring and other costs in the current period consists of consulting-related costs associated with the Company’s strategic realignment efforts to optimize its supply chain and distribution network. The decrease in Restructuring and other costs is due to prior year associate severance and separation costs and equity award acceleration costs associated with severance related to the Company’s associate voluntary termination program during the second quarter of fiscal year 2024. See Note 9, “Restructuring and Other Costs” in the Notes to Condensed Consolidated Financial Statements for additional information.
Current report
Total other expense decreased 6.3%, or $0.7 million, to $10.5 million for the thirteen-week period ended March 1, 2025, as compared to $11.2 million for the same period in the prior fiscal year. The decrease was primarily due to lower interest costs on our Credit Facilities and lower fees incurred associated with the Receivables Purchase Agreement entered into during fiscal year 2023, partially offset by the impact of realized and unrealized losses on foreign exchange.
Current report
Twenty-Six-Week Period Ended March 1, 2025 Compared to the Twenty-Six-Week Period Ended March 2, 2024
Current report
Net Sales
Current report
ADS Percentage Change
Current report
Gross Profit
Current report
Gross profit of $743.4 million for the twenty-six-week period ended March 1, 2025 decreased $38.3 million, or 4.9%, compared to the same period in the prior fiscal year. Gross profit margin was 40.8% for the twenty-six-week period ended March 1, 2025, as compared to 41.4% for the same period in the prior fiscal year. The decrease in gross profit was primarily a result of lower sales volume, as described above. The decrease in gross profit margin was primarily a result of higher inventory cost and customer mix, as our sales to national account and public sector customers typically transact at lower gross profit margins than the business as a whole. Recent acquisitions also presented an additional headwind for gross profit margin.
Current report
Operating Expenses
Current report
Operating expenses increased 4.0%, or $23.3 million, to $605.1 million for the twenty-six-week period ended March 1, 2025, as compared to $581.9 million for the same period in the prior fiscal year. Operating expenses were 33.2% of net sales for the twenty-six-week period ended March 1, 2025, as compared to 30.8% for the same period in the prior fiscal year. The increase in Operating expenses and Operating expenses as a percentage of net sales was due to higher payroll and payroll-related costs and investments supporting our digital initiatives and solutions growth.
Current report
Freight expense was $73.3 million for the twenty-six-week period ended March 1, 2025, as compared to $73.9 million for the same period in the prior fiscal year.
Current report
Restructuring and Other Costs
Current report
Income from Operations
Current report
Income from operations decreased 30.2%, or $58.2 million, to $134.5 million for the twenty-six-week period ended March 1, 2025, as compared to $192.8 million for the same period in the prior fiscal year. Income from operations as a percentage of net sales decreased to 7.4% for the twenty-six-week period ended March 1, 2025, as compared to 10.2% for the same period in the prior fiscal year. The decrease in income from operations as a percentage of net sales was primarily attributable to, as described above, a decrease in gross margin and an increase in Operating expenses as a percentage of net sales during the twenty-six-week period ended March 1, 2025.
Current report
Total Other Expense
Current report
Provision for Income Taxes
Current report
Net Income
Current report
•an increase in the change of inventory due to current fiscal year opportunistic purchases at calendar year-end despite the impact of lower sales volumes in both fiscal years; partially offset by
Current report
Days’ sales outstanding as of March 1, 2025 improved compared to both August 31, 2024 and March 2, 2024. The improvement in days’ sales outstanding was driven by improved collections from our national account customers.
Removed paragraphs (2)
Previous report
Freight expense was $37.5 million for the thirteen-week period ended November 30, 2024, as compared to $37.4 million for the same period in the prior fiscal year.
Previous report
Days’ sales outstanding as of November 30, 2024 remained comparable to December 2, 2023, whereas the increase in days’ sales outstanding as of November 30, 2024 as compared to August 31, 2024 was primarily due to the receivables portfolio consisting of a greater percentage of our national account program sales, which typically have longer payment terms.
Reworded paragraphs (32)
Previous wording
MSC is a leading North American distributor of a broad range of metalworking and maintenance, repair and operations (“MRO”) products and services. We help our customers drive greater productivity, profitability and growth with inventory management and other supply chain solutions and deep expertise from more than 80 years of working with customers across industries. We offer approximately 2.4 million active, saleable stock-keeping units through our catalogs; our brochures; our E-commerce channels, including our website, www.mscdirect.com (the “MSC website”); our inventory management solutions; and our customer care centers, customer fulfillment centers (“CFCs”), regional inventory centers and warehouses. We service our customers from five CFCs, nine regional inventory centers, 43 warehouses, and five manufacturing locations. We continue to implement our strategies to gain market share, generate new customers, increase sales to existing customers and diversify our customer base.
Current wording
MSC is a leading North American distributor of a broad range of metalworking and maintenance, repair and operations (“MRO”) products and services. We help our customers drive greater productivity, profitability and growth with inventory management and other supply chain solutions and deep expertise from more than 80 years of working with customers across industries. We offer approximately 2.4 million active, saleable stock-keeping units through our catalogs; our brochures; our E-commerce channels, including our website, www.mscdirect.com (the “MSC website”); our inventory management solutions; and our customer care centers, customer fulfillment centers (“CFCs”), regional inventory centers and warehouses. We service our customers from five CFCs, nine regional inventory centers, 40 warehouses, and five manufacturing locations. We continue to implement our strategies to gain market share, generate new customers, increase sales to existing customers and diversify our customer base.
Previous wording
Our business model focuses on providing overall procurement cost reduction and just-in-time delivery to meet our customer’s needs. Many of our products are carried in stock, and orders for these in-stock products are typically fulfilled the day on which the order is received. We focus on offering inventory, process and procurement solutions that reduce supply chain costs and improve plant floor productivity for our customers. We aim to achieve ongoing cost reductions throughout our business by implementing cost-saving strategies and leveraging our existing infrastructure. Additionally, we provide our customers with further procurement cost-saving solutions through technologies such as our Vendor Managed Inventory (“VMI”), Customer Managed Inventory (“CMI”) and vending programs. Our vending machines in service totaled 27,747 as of November 30, 2024, compared to 25,320 as of December 2, 2023, and our In-Plant programs totaled 369 locations as of November 30, 2024, compared to 287 as of December 2, 2023. Our sales force, which focuses on a more complex and high-touch role, drives value for our customers by enabling them to achieve higher levels of growth, profitability and productivity. Our field sales and service associate headcount was 2,723 as of November 30, 2024, compared to 2,619 as of December 2, 2023.
Current wording
Our business model focuses on providing overall procurement cost reduction and just-in-time delivery to meet our customer’s needs. Many of our products are carried in stock, and orders for these in-stock products are typically fulfilled the day on which the order is received. We focus on offering inventory, process and procurement solutions that reduce supply chain costs and improve plant floor productivity for our customers. We aim to achieve ongoing cost reductions throughout our business by implementing cost-saving strategies and leveraging our existing infrastructure. Additionally, we provide our customers with further procurement cost-saving solutions through technologies such as our Vendor Managed Inventory (“VMI”), Customer Managed Inventory (“CMI”) and vending programs. Our vending machines in service totaled 28,085 as of March 1, 2025, compared to 25,854 as of March 2, 2024, and our In-Plant programs totaled 387 locations as of March 1, 2025, compared to 312 as of March 2, 2024. Our sales force, which focuses on a more complex and high-touch role, drives value for our customers by enabling them to achieve higher levels of growth, profitability and productivity. Our field sales and service associate headcount was 2,726 as of March 1, 2025, compared to 2,640 as of March 2, 2024.
Previous wording
Highlights during the thirteen-week period ended November 30, 2024 include:
Current wording
Highlights during the twenty-six weeks ended March 1, 2025 include:
Previous wording
•We generated $101.9 million of cash from operations, compared to $81.2 million for the same period in the prior fiscal year.
Current wording
•We generated $156.3 million of cash from operations, compared to $159.9 million for the same period in the prior fiscal year.
Previous wording
•We had net borrowings of $11.8 million on our credit facilities and private placement debt, compared to net borrowings of $83.0 million for the same period in the prior fiscal year.
Current wording
•We had net borrowings of $30.3 million on our credit facilities and private placement debt, compared to net borrowings of $95.0 million for the same period in the prior fiscal year.
Previous wording
•We paid out an aggregate $47.5 million in regular cash dividends, compared to an aggregate $47.2 million in regular cash dividends for the same period in the prior fiscal year.
Current wording
•We paid out an aggregate $94.9 million in regular cash dividends, compared to an aggregate $94.0 million in regular cash dividends for the same period in the prior fiscal year.
Previous wording
•We repurchased $18.1 million of MSC’s Class A Common Stock, par value $0.001 per share (“Class A Common Stock”), excluding excise taxes, compared to $132.0 million for the same period in the prior fiscal year. The higher share repurchase volume in the prior year was primarily due to repurchases to offset the share dilution resulting from the Reclassification.
Current wording
•We repurchased $30.5 million of MSC’s Class A Common Stock, par value $0.001 per share (“Class A Common Stock”), excluding excise taxes, compared to $148.7 million for the same period in the prior fiscal year. The higher share repurchase volume in the prior year was primarily due to repurchases to offset the share dilution resulting from the reclassification of the Company’s common stock to eliminate the Class B Common Stock (the “Reclassification”).
Previous wording
The first phase of our Company-wide initiative, referred to as “Mission Critical,” focused on market share capture and improved profitability. We successfully executed on the first phase of Mission Critical initiatives at the end of fiscal year 2023, which included solidifying our market-leading metalworking business, with an emphasis on selling our product portfolio, expanding our solutions, improving our digital and E-commerce capabilities and diversifying our customers and end-markets. The next phase of our mission critical journey, which began in fiscal year 2024, is anchored in three pillars: (i) maintaining the momentum of the first phase of the mission critical program and our existing growth drivers, (ii) increasing our focus on both core customers and OEM fasteners, and (iii) driving productivity improvements and reducing operating expenses as a percentage of net sales. To accomplish the next phase of our mission critical journey, we will leverage investments in advanced analytics to improve supply chain performance, maintain momentum from our category line reviews and upgrade our digital core to unlock productivity within our order-to-cash and procure-to-pay processes. In fiscal year 2024, we completed our web price realignment initiative, and we are currently in the process of rolling out our E-commerce enhancements.
Current wording
The first phase of our Company-wide initiative, referred to as “Mission Critical,” focused on market share capture and improved profitability. We successfully executed on the first phase of Mission Critical initiatives at the end of fiscal year 2023, which included solidifying our market-leading metalworking business, with an emphasis on selling our product portfolio, expanding our solutions, improving our digital and E-commerce capabilities and diversifying our customers and end-markets. The next phase of our mission critical journey, which began in fiscal year 2024, is anchored in three pillars: (i) maintaining the momentum of the first phase of the mission critical program and our existing growth drivers, (ii) increasing our focus on both core customers and OEM fasteners, and (iii) driving productivity improvements and reducing operating expenses as a percentage of net sales. To accomplish the next phase of our mission critical journey, we will leverage investments in advanced analytics to improve supply chain performance, maintain momentum from our category line reviews and upgrade our digital core to unlock productivity within our order-to-cash and procure-to-pay processes. In fiscal year 2024, we completed our web price realignment initiative, and in the second quarter of fiscal year 2025, we launched our enhanced marketing efforts and rolled out several E-commerce enhancements, including a streamlined cart and checkout process and improved product discovery functions.
Previous wording
We utilize various indices when evaluating the level of our business activity, including the Industrial Production (“IP”) Index. Approximately 66% of our revenues came from sales in the manufacturing sector during the thirteen-week period ended November 30, 2024. Through statistical analysis, we have found that trends in our customers’ activity have correlated to changes in the IP Index. The IP Index measures short-term changes in industrial production. Growth in the IP Index from month to month indicates growth in the manufacturing, mining and utilities industries. The IP Index over the three months ended November 2024 and the average for the three- and 12-month periods ended November 2024 were as follows:
Current wording
We utilize various indices when evaluating the level of our business activity, including the Industrial Production (“IP”) Index. Through statistical analysis, we have found that trends in our customers’ activity have correlated to changes in the IP Index. The IP Index measures short-term changes in industrial production. Growth in the IP Index from month to month indicates growth in the manufacturing, mining and utilities industries. Approximately 69% and 67% of our revenues came from sales in the manufacturing sector during the thirteen- and twenty-six-week periods ended March 1, 2025, respectively. The IP Index over the three months ended February 2025 and the average for the three- and 12-month periods ended February 2025 were as follows:
Previous wording
The average IP Index for the three months ended November 2024 was 102.2, a decline from the adjusted average from the prior quarter and the comparative quarter in the prior year, which were 102.9 and 102.8, respectively.
Current wording
The average IP Index for the three months ended February 2025 was 103.6, an increase from the prior quarter average of 102.2 and the comparative quarter in the prior year average of 102.4.
Previous wording
During the first quarter of fiscal year 2025, the Company continued to experience soft demand for the products and services it offers. This soft demand was felt more acutely in the heavy manufacturing industry, which represented 57% of our revenues during the thirteen-week period ended November 30, 2024. The IP index for the Machinery & Equipment segment indicated a contraction of 1.0% for the first quarter of fiscal year 2025. The subindexes for Primary Metals and Fabricated Metals also indicated contraction for the quarter ended November 30, 2024. As a result, the demand environment for the Company’s products was softer than the demand environment for the economy as a whole due to the concentration of the Company’s customers in these and other industries, which lagged the IP index as a whole.
Current wording
During the second quarter of fiscal year 2025, the Company continued to experience soft demand for the products and services it offers. This soft demand was felt more acutely in the heavy manufacturing industry, which represented 59% of our revenues during the March 1, 2025. The IP index for the Primary Metals, Fabricated Metals and Automotive segments, among others, indicated a contraction for the second quarter of fiscal year 2025. As a result, the demand environment for the Company’s products was softer than the demand environment for the economy as a whole, which we believe is due to the concentration of the Company’s customers in these and other subindex industries, which lagged the IP index as a whole.
Previous wording
Net sales decreased 2.7%, or $25.5 million, to $928.5 million for the thirteen-week period ended November 30, 2024, as compared to $954.0 million for the same period in the prior fiscal year. The $25.5 million decrease in net sales was comprised of $32.1 million of lower sales volume, $2.4 million of unfavorable foreign exchange impact and a negative $0.4 million impact from pricing, inclusive of changes in customer and product mix, discounting and other items, partially offset by an additional $9.4 million of net sales as a result of our fiscal year 2024 acquisitions. Of the $25.5 million decrease in net sales during the thirteen-week period ended November 30, 2024, sales to our core and other customers decreased $27.6 million, sales to our national account customers decreased $5.6 million and sales to our public sector customers increased $7.7 million.
Current wording
Net sales decreased 4.7%, or $43.6 million, to $891.7 million for the thirteen-week period ended March 1, 2025, as compared to $935.3 million for the same period in the prior fiscal year. The $43.6 million decrease in net sales was comprised of $44.5 million of lower sales volume, $3.1 million of unfavorable foreign exchange impact and a negative $2.1 million impact from pricing, inclusive of changes in customer and product mix, discounting and other items, partially offset by an additional $6.1 million of net sales as a result of our fiscal year 2024 acquisitions. Of the $43.6 million decrease in net sales during the thirteen-week period ended March 1, 2025, sales to our core and other customers decreased $34.8 million, sales to our national account customers decreased $18.6 million and sales to our public sector customers increased $9.8 million.
Previous wording
Gross profit of $378.2 million for the thirteen-week period ended November 30, 2024 decreased $14.9 million, or 3.8%, compared to the same period in the prior fiscal year. Gross profit margin was 40.7% for the thirteen-week period ended November 30, 2024, as compared to 41.2% for the same period in the prior fiscal year. The decrease in gross profit was primarily a result of lower sales volume, as described above. The decrease in gross profit margin was primarily a result of headwinds between sales price and cost of goods sold and, to a lesser extent, a negative impact from recent acquisitions.
Current wording
Gross profit of $365.2 million for the thirteen-week period ended March 1, 2025 decreased $23.4 million, or 6.0%, compared to the same period in the prior fiscal year. Gross profit margin was 41.0% for the thirteen-week period ended March 1, 2025, as compared to 41.5% for the same period in the prior fiscal year. The decrease in gross profit was primarily a result of lower sales volume, as described above. The decrease in gross profit margin was primarily a result of higher inventory cost and customer mix, as our sales to national account and public sector customers typically transact at lower gross profit margins than the business as a whole. Recent acquisitions also presented an additional headwind for gross profit margin.
Previous wording
Operating expenses increased 4.4%, or $12.9 million, to $303.6 million for the thirteen-week period ended November 30, 2024, as compared to $290.6 million for the same period in the prior fiscal year. Operating expenses were 32.7% of net sales for the thirteen-week period ended November 30, 2024, as compared to 30.5% for the same period in the prior fiscal year. The increase in Operating expenses and Operating expenses as a percentage of net sales were primarily higher payroll costs, primarily due to higher associate headcount to support our strategic growth investments and our annual merit increases, and investments supporting our digital initiatives and solutions growth.
Current wording
Operating expenses increased 3.6%, or $10.3 million, to $301.6 million for the thirteen-week period ended March 1, 2025, as compared to $291.2 million for the same period in the prior fiscal year. Operating expenses were 33.8% of net sales for the thirteen-week period ended March 1, 2025, as compared to 31.1% for the same period in the prior fiscal year. The increase in Operating expenses and Operating expenses as a percentage of net sales was primarily due to higher payroll and payroll-related costs and investments supporting our solutions growth.
Previous wording
Payroll and payroll-related costs for the thirteen-week period ended November 30, 2024 were 57.2% of total Operating expenses, as compared to 56.8% for the same period in the prior fiscal year. Payroll and payroll-related costs, which include salary, incentive compensation, sales commission and fringe benefit costs, increased $8.6 million for the thirteen-week period ended November 30, 2024. The majority of this increase compared to the same period in the prior fiscal year was due to higher incentive compensation and fringe benefit costs, as well as higher salary expense attributable to higher associate headcount to support our strategic growth investments and our annual merit increases.
Current wording
Payroll and payroll-related costs for the thirteen-week period ended March 1, 2025 were 57.5% of total Operating expenses, as compared to 57.1% for the same period in the prior fiscal year. Payroll and payroll-related costs, which include salary, incentive compensation, sales commission and fringe benefit costs, increased $7.1 million for the thirteen-week period ended March 1, 2025. The majority of this increase compared to the same period in the prior fiscal year was due to higher incentive compensation, as well as higher salary expense attributable to higher associate headcount to support our strategic growth investments and our annual merit increases.
Previous wording
Income from operations decreased 28.8%, or $29.3 million, to $72.3 million for the thirteen-week period ended November 30, 2024, as compared to $101.6 million for the same period in the prior fiscal year. Income from operations as a percentage of net sales decreased to 7.8% for the thirteen-week period ended November 30, 2024, as compared to 10.6% for the same period in the prior fiscal year. The decrease in income from operations as a percentage of net sales was primarily attributable to, as described above, a lower gross profit margin and an increase in Operating expenses as a percentage of net sales during the thirteen-week period ended November 30, 2024.
Current wording
Income from operations decreased 31.7%, or $28.9 million, to $62.2 million for the thirteen-week period ended March 1, 2025, as compared to $91.2 million for the same period in the prior fiscal year. Income from operations as a percentage of net sales decreased to 7.0% for the thirteen-week period ended March 1, 2025, as compared to 9.7% for the same period in the prior fiscal year. The decrease in income from operations as a percentage of net sales was primarily attributable to, as described above, a lower gross profit margin and an increase in Operating expenses as a percentage of net sales during the thirteen-week period ended March 1, 2025.
Previous wording
The Company’s effective tax rate for the thirteen-week period ended November 30, 2024 was 24.6%, as compared to 24.3% for the same period in the prior fiscal year. The increase in the effective tax rate was primarily due to a lower tax benefit from stock-based compensation.
Current wording
The Company’s effective tax rate for the thirteen-week period ended March 1, 2025 was 24.3%, as compared to 23.0% for the same period in the prior fiscal year. The increase in the effective tax rate was primarily due to a lower tax benefit from stock-based compensation.
Previous wording
We believe that our ability to transact business with our customers directly through the MSC website as well as through various other electronic portals gives us a competitive advantage over smaller suppliers. Sales made through our E-commerce platforms, including sales made through EDI systems, VMI systems, Extensible Markup Language ordering-based systems, vending, hosted systems and other electronic portals, represented 63.7% of consolidated net sales for the thirteen-week period ended November 30, 2024, as compared to 63.3% of consolidated net sales for the same period in the prior fiscal year.
Current wording
We believe that our ability to transact business with our customers directly through the MSC website as well as through various other electronic portals gives us a competitive advantage over smaller suppliers. Sales made through our E-commerce platforms, including sales made through EDI systems, VMI systems, Extensible Markup Language ordering-based systems, vending, hosted systems and other electronic portals, represented 63.7% of consolidated net sales for the twenty-six-week period ended March 1, 2025, as compared to 63.2% of consolidated net sales for the same period in the prior fiscal year.
Previous wording
We incurred $2.3 million in Restructuring and other costs for the thirteen-week period ended November 30, 2024, as compared to $0.9 million for the same period in the prior fiscal year. The increase in Restructuring and other costs primarily consisted of consulting-related costs associated with the Company’s strategic realignment efforts to optimize its supply chain and distribution network. See Note 9, “Restructuring and Other Costs” in the Notes to Condensed Consolidated Financial Statements for additional information.
Current wording
We incurred $3.8 million in Restructuring and other costs for the twenty-six-week period ended March 1, 2025, as compared to $7.1 million for the same period in the prior fiscal year. Restructuring and other costs primarily consists of consulting-related costs associated with the Company’s strategic realignment efforts to optimize its supply chain and distribution network. Restructuring and other costs in the prior year period also include associate severance and separation costs and equity award acceleration costs associated with severance related to the Company’s associate voluntary termination program. See Note 9, “Restructuring and Other Costs” in the Notes to Condensed Consolidated Financial Statements for additional information.
Previous wording
Total other expense increased 13.9%, or $1.4 million, to $11.7 million for the thirteen-week period ended November 30, 2024, as compared to $10.3 million for the same period in the prior fiscal year. The increase was primarily due to the impact of realized and unrealized losses on foreign exchange.
Current wording
Total other expense increased 3.4%, or $0.7 million, to $22.2 million for the twenty-six-week period ended March 1, 2025, as compared to $21.5 million for the same period in the prior fiscal year. The increase was primarily due to the impact of realized and unrealized losses on foreign exchange, partially offset by lower fees incurred associated with the RPA entered into during the second quarter of fiscal year 2023.
Previous wording
As of November 30, 2024, we had $57.3 million in cash and cash equivalents, substantially all with well-known financial institutions. Historically, our primary financing needs have been to fund our working capital requirements necessitated by our sales growth and the costs of acquisitions, new products, new facilities, facility expansions, investments in vending solutions, technology investments, and productivity investments. Cash generated from operations, together with borrowings under our credit facilities and net proceeds from the private placement notes, have been used to fund these needs, to repurchase shares of Class A Common Stock from time to time, and to pay dividends to our shareholders.
Current wording
As of March 1, 2025, we had $41.3 million in cash and cash equivalents, substantially all with well-known financial institutions. Historically, our primary financing needs have been to fund our working capital requirements necessitated by our sales growth and the costs of acquisitions, new products, new facilities, facility expansions, investments in vending solutions, technology investments, and productivity investments. Cash generated from operations, together with borrowings under our credit facilities and net proceeds from the private placement notes, have been used to fund these needs, to repurchase shares of Class A Common Stock from time to time, and to pay dividends to our shareholders.
Previous wording
As of November 30, 2024, total borrowings outstanding, representing amounts due under our credit facilities and notes, as well as all finance leases and financing arrangements, were $520.0 million, net of unamortized debt issuance costs of $0.7 million, as compared to total borrowings outstanding of $508.8 million, net of unamortized debt issuance costs of $0.8 million, as of the end of fiscal year 2024. The increase in total borrowings outstanding was driven by higher net borrowings under our credit facilities to fund the repurchase of shares of Class A Common Stock during the first quarter of fiscal year 2025. See Note 7, “Debt” in the Notes to Condensed Consolidated Financial Statements for more information about these balances.
Current wording
As of March 1, 2025, total borrowings outstanding, representing amounts due under our credit facilities and notes, as well as all finance leases and financing arrangements, were $539.0 million, net of unamortized debt issuance costs of $0.6 million, as compared to total borrowings outstanding of $508.8 million, net of unamortized debt issuance costs of $0.8 million, as of the end of fiscal year 2024. The increase in total borrowings outstanding was driven by higher net borrowings under our credit facilities. See Note 7, “Debt” in the Notes to Condensed Consolidated Financial Statements for more information about these balances.
Previous wording
Net cash provided by operating activities was $101.9 million for the thirteen weeks ended November 30, 2024, compared to $81.2 million for the thirteen weeks ended December 2, 2023. The increase was primarily due to the following:
Current wording
Net cash provided by operating activities was $156.3 million for the twenty-six weeks ended March 1, 2025, compared to $159.9 million for the twenty-six weeks ended March 2, 2024. The decrease was primarily due to the following:
Previous wording
•an increase in the change in accounts payable and accrued purchases as compared to the prior year period primarily due to the decrease in accruals for incentive compensation in the prior year; partially offset by
Current wording
•an increase in the change in accounts payable and accrued purchases as compared to the prior year period primarily due to the decrease in accruals for incentive compensation in the prior year.
Previous wording
Working capital as of November 30, 2024 declined slightly compared to August 31, 2024 and declined compared to December 2, 2023, while the current ratio declined slightly compared to both August 31, 2024 and December 2, 2023. The decrease in working capital compared to December 2, 2023 was primarily due to lower inventory balances, partially offset by lower balances in the Current portion of debt including obligations under finance leases and Accrued expenses and other current liabilities.
Current wording
Working capital and current ratio as of March 1, 2025 declined compared to August 31, 2024 and March 2, 2024. The decrease in working capital compared to August 31, 2024 was primarily due to lower accounts receivable balances, partially offset by a higher balance in cash and cash equivalents. The decrease in working capital compared to March 2, 2024 was primarily due to lower balances in inventories, accounts receivable and prepaid expenses and other current assets, partially offset by a higher cash balance and a lower balance in the Current portion of debt including obligations under finance leases.
Previous wording
Inventory turnover as of November 30, 2024 remained comparable August 31, 2024 and increased compared to December 2, 2023. This improvement in inventory turnover compared to December 2, 2023 was due to growth in cost of goods sold outpacing growth in inventory. Recent lower inventory balances were due to lower purchase volumes, category management efforts and supply chain efficiencies.
Current wording
Inventory turnover as of March 1, 2025 increased compared to both August 31, 2024 and March 2, 2024. Inventory turnover continues to improve due to lower purchase volumes, category management efforts and supply chain efficiencies to optimize inventory levels.
Previous wording
Net cash used in investing activities for the thirteen weeks ended November 30, 2024 and December 2, 2023 was $20.4 million and $18.4 million, respectively. The use of cash for both periods was primarily due to expenditures for property, plant and equipment mainly related to vending programs and other infrastructure and technology investments.
Current wording
Net cash used in investing activities for the twenty-six weeks ended March 1, 2025 and March 2, 2024 was $50.7 million and $53.7 million, respectively. The use of cash for both periods was primarily due to expenditures for property, plant and equipment mainly related to vending programs and other infrastructure and technology investments. The use of cash for the twenty-six weeks ended March 2, 2024 also included cash outflows due to the acquisitions of KAR Industrial Inc. and Schmitz Manufacturing Research & Technology LLC.
Previous wording
Net cash used in financing activities was $53.4 million for the thirteen weeks ended November 30, 2024, compared to $87.2 million for the thirteen weeks ended December 2, 2023, primarily due to the following:
Current wording
Net cash used in financing activities was $93.1 million for the twenty-six-weeks ended March 1, 2025, compared to $134.3 million for the twenty-six weeks ended March 2, 2024, primarily due to the following:
Previous wording
•$18.1 million in aggregate repurchases of Class A Common Stock during the thirteen weeks ended November 30, 2024, compared to $132.0 million in aggregate repurchases of Class A Common Stock during the thirteen weeks ended December 2, 2023;
Current wording
•$30.5 million in aggregate repurchases of Class A Common Stock during the twenty-six weeks ended March 1, 2025, compared to $148.7 million in aggregate repurchases of Class A Common Stock during the twenty-six weeks ended March 2, 2024;
Previous wording
•$47.5 million of regular cash dividends paid during the thirteen weeks ended November 30, 2024, compared to $47.2 million of regular cash dividends paid during the thirteen weeks ended December 2, 2023; and
Current wording
•$94.9 million of regular cash dividends paid during the twenty-six weeks ended March 1, 2025, compared to $94.0 million of regular cash dividends paid during the twenty-six weeks ended March 2, 2024; and
Previous wording
•net borrowings of $11.8 million under our credit facilities and private placement debt during the thirteen weeks ended November 30, 2024, compared to net borrowings of $83.0 million during the thirteen weeks ended December 2, 2023.
Current wording
•net borrowings of $30.3 million under our credit facilities and private placement debt during the twenty-six weeks ended March 1, 2025, compared to net borrowings of $95.0 million during the twenty-six weeks ended March 2, 2024.
Previous wording
In April 2017, the Company entered into a $600.0 million revolving credit facility, which was subsequently amended and extended in August 2021. Subsequent to the fiscal quarter ended November 30, 2024, the Company made additional net payments of $20.0 million through December 18, 2024 on its revolving credit facility. The current unused balance of $528.7 million from the revolving credit facility, which is reduced by outstanding letters of credit, is available for working capital purposes if necessary. As of November 30, 2024, the Company also had three uncommitted credit facilities, totaling $211.0 million in aggregate maximum uncommitted availability. As of November 30, 2024, we were in compliance with the operating and financial covenants of our credit facilities. See Note 7, “Debt” in the Notes to Condensed Consolidated Financial Statements for more information about these balances.
Current wording
In April 2017, the Company entered into a $600.0 million revolving credit facility, which was subsequently amended and extended in August 2021. Subsequent to the fiscal quarter ended March 1, 2025, the Company has not made any additional payments or borrowings through March 17, 2025 on its revolving credit facility. The current unused balance of $493.7 million from the revolving credit facility, which is reduced by outstanding letters of credit, is available for working capital purposes if necessary. As of March 1, 2025, the Company also had three uncommitted credit facilities, totaling $216.0 million in aggregate maximum uncommitted availability. As of March 1, 2025, we were in compliance with the operating and financial covenants of our credit facilities. See Note 7, “Debt” in the Notes to Condensed Consolidated Financial Statements for more information about these balances.
Rearranged current paragraphs (10)
Current report — wording carried from elsewhere
We believe that our ability to transact business with our customers directly through the MSC website as well as through various other electronic portals gives us a competitive advantage over smaller suppliers. Sales made through our E-commerce platforms, including sales made through Electronic Data Interchange (“EDI”) systems, VMI systems, Extensible Markup Language ordering-based systems, vending, hosted systems and other electronic portals, represented 63.6% of consolidated net sales for the thirteen-week period ended March 1, 2025, as compared to 63.2% of consolidated net sales for the same period in the prior fiscal year.
Current report — wording carried from elsewhere
The table below summarizes the Company’s results of operations both in dollars (in thousands) and as a percentage of net sales for the periods indicated:
Current report — wording carried from elsewhere
Net sales decreased 3.7%, or $69.1 million, to $1,820.2 million for the twenty-six-week period ended March 1, 2025, as compared to $1,889.3 million for the same period in the prior fiscal year. The $69.1 million decrease in net sales was comprised of $76.6 million of lower sales volume, $5.5 million of unfavorable foreign exchange impact and a negative $2.5 million impact from pricing, inclusive of changes in customer and product mix, discounting and other items, partially offset by $15.5 million of net sales from fiscal year 2024 acquisitions. Of the $69.1 million decrease in net sales during the twenty-six-week period ended March 1, 2025, sales to our core and other customers decreased $62.4 million, sales to our national account customers decreased $24.2 million and sales to our public sector customers increased $17.5 million.
Current report — wording carried from elsewhere
The table below shows, among other things, the change in our ADS by total Company, by customer end-market and by customer type for the twenty-six-week periods ended March 1, 2025 and March 2, 2024, each as compared to the same period in the prior fiscal year:
Current report — wording carried from elsewhere
(1)ADS is calculated using the number of business days in the United States for the periods indicated. The Company believes ADS is a key performance indicator because it shows the effectiveness of the Company’s selling performance on a consistent basis between periods.
Current report — wording carried from elsewhere
(2)Percent reflects the change from the 2025 fiscal period to the 2024 fiscal period and the change from the 2024 fiscal period to the 2022 fiscal period, respectively.
Current report — wording carried from elsewhere
(3)Includes reclassifications of certain customers during fiscal year 2024, primarily between national account customers and core and other customers.
Current report — wording carried from elsewhere
Payroll and payroll-related costs for the twenty-six-week period ended March 1, 2025 were 57.3% of total Operating expenses, as compared to 56.9% for the same period in the prior fiscal year. Payroll and payroll-related costs, which include salary, incentive compensation, sales commission, and fringe benefit costs, increased $15.7 million for the twenty-six-week period ended March 1, 2025. The majority of this increase compared to the same period in the prior fiscal year was due to higher incentive compensation as well as higher salary expense attributable to higher associate headcount to support our strategic growth investments and our annual merit increases.
Current report — wording carried from elsewhere
The Company’s effective tax rate for the twenty-six-week period ended March 1, 2025 was 24.5%, as compared to 23.7% for the same period in the prior fiscal year. The increase in the effective tax rate was primarily due to a lower tax benefit from stock-based compensation.
Current report — wording carried from elsewhere
The factors which affected net income for the twenty-six-week period ended March 1, 2025, as compared to the same period in the prior fiscal year, have been discussed above.