Commercial Building Products Stocks Q1 Recap: Benchmarking AZZ (NYSE:AZZ)

Wrapping up Q1 earnings, we look at the numbers and key takeaways for the commercial building products stocks, including AZZ (NYSE:AZZ) and its peers.

Commercial building products companies, which often serve more complicated projects, can supplement their core business with higher-margin installation and consulting services revenues. More recently, advances to address labor availability and job site productivity have spurred innovation. Additionally, companies in the space that can produce more energy-efficient materials have opportunities to take share. However, these companies are at the whim of commercial construction volumes, which tend to be cyclical and can be impacted heavily by economic factors such as interest rates. Additionally, the costs of raw materials can be driven by a myriad of worldwide factors and greatly influence the profitability of commercial building products companies.

The 5 commercial building products stocks we track reported a strong Q1. As a group, revenues beat analysts’ consensus estimates by 1.9% while next quarter’s revenue guidance was 2% above.

Luckily, commercial building products stocks have performed well with share prices up 10.9% on average since the latest earnings results.

Slowest Q1: AZZ (NYSE:AZZ)

Responsible for projects like nuclear facilities, AZZ (NYSE:AZZ) is a provider of metal coating and power infrastructure solutions.

AZZ reported revenues of $351.9 million, down 4% year on year. This print fell short of analysts’ expectations by 4.3%. Overall, it was a slower quarter for the company with a miss of analysts’ EBITDA estimates.

Tom Ferguson, President, and Chief Executive Officer of AZZ, commented, "Fiscal year 2025 was a successful year for AZZ. We delivered record full year results and made significant progress on our growth initiatives throughout the year. We are pleased with full-year sales growth of 2.6%, which includes record results in both Metal Coatings and Precoat Metals, despite navigating significant weather impacts in the fourth quarter. For the year, our Metal Coatings segment delivered sales of $665.1 million, and 30.9% EBITDA margin, while Precoat Metals delivered sales of $912.6 million and 19.6% EBITDA margin.

AZZ delivered the weakest performance against analyst estimates and weakest full-year guidance update of the whole group. Interestingly, the stock is up 14.5% since reporting and currently trades at $88.99.

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

Best Q1: Insteel (NYSE:IIIN)

Growing from a small wire manufacturer to one of the largest in the U.S., Insteel (NYSE:IIIN) provides steel wire reinforcing products for concrete.

Insteel reported revenues of $160.7 million, up 26.1% year on year, outperforming analysts’ expectations by 7.2%. The business had an incredible quarter with an impressive beat of analysts’ EPS estimates and a solid beat of analysts’ EBITDA estimates.

Insteel achieved the biggest analyst estimates beat and fastest revenue growth among its peers. The market seems happy with the results as the stock is up 33.7% since reporting. It currently trades at $35.66.

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

Johnson Controls (NYSE:JCI)

Founded after patenting the electric room thermostat, Johnson Controls (NYSE:JCI) specializes in building products and technology solutions, including HVAC systems, fire and security systems, and energy storage.

Johnson Controls reported revenues of $5.68 billion, up 1.4% year on year, exceeding analysts’ expectations by 0.7%. It may have had the worst quarter among its peers, but its results were still good as it also locked in a solid beat of analysts’ organic revenue estimates and an impressive beat of analysts’ adjusted operating income estimates.

Interestingly, the stock is up 9.3% since the results and currently trades at $97.

Read our full analysis of Johnson Controls’s results here.

Janus (NYSE:JBI)

Standing out with its digital keyless entry into self-storage room technology, Janus (NYSE:JBI) is a provider of easily accessible self-storage solutions.

Janus reported revenues of $210.5 million, down 17.3% year on year. This number surpassed analysts’ expectations by 2%. Overall, it was a very strong quarter as it also put up an impressive beat of analysts’ adjusted operating income estimates and a solid beat of analysts’ EPS estimates.

Janus had the slowest revenue growth among its peers. The stock is up 12.8% since reporting and currently trades at $8.06.

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

Apogee (NASDAQ:APOG)

Involved in the design of the Apple Store on Fifth Avenue in New York City, Apogee (NASDAQ:APOG) sells architectural products and services such as high-performance glass for commercial buildings.

Apogee reported revenues of $345.7 million, down 4.5% year on year. This print beat analysts’ expectations by 4.2%. It was a strong quarter as it also recorded an impressive beat of analysts’ EBITDA estimates and full-year revenue guidance beating analysts’ expectations.

Apogee achieved the highest full-year guidance raise among its peers. The stock is down 15.7% since reporting and currently trades at $38.66.

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

Market Update

Thanks to the Fed’s series of rate hikes in 2022 and 2023, inflation has cooled significantly from its post-pandemic highs, drawing closer to the 2% goal. This disinflation has occurred without severely impacting economic growth, suggesting the success of a soft landing. The stock market thrived in 2024, spurred by recent rate cuts (0.5% in September and 0.25% in November), and a notable surge followed Donald Trump’s presidential election win in November, propelling indices to historic highs. Nonetheless, the outlook for 2025 remains clouded by potential trade policy changes and corporate tax discussions, which could impact business confidence and growth. The path forward holds both optimism and caution as new policies take shape.

Want to invest in winners with rock-solid fundamentals? Check out our Top 6 Stocks and add them to your watchlist. These companies are poised for growth regardless of the political or macroeconomic climate.

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