Wesco reported third-quarter organic sales growth of 16.6% year over year, driven by over 50% growth in data center equipment sales. Management raised full-year guidance, and shares traded up over 4% the morning of Oct. 29.
Countercyclical cash generation supports a flexible leverage strategy and enables Wesco to make acquisitions during periods when companies are most likely to be distressed and sold at a discount.
Bears
Wesco’s acquisition strategy has potentially diluted returns but fueled much of its past growth.
Wesco can be traced back to the late 1800s but was officially founded in 1922, acting as the distribution arm of Westinghouse Electric. Throughout the 1900s, Wesco entered and subsequently exited the consumer electronics, transit, bottling, and nuclear plant distribution markets. It was sold to a private equity firm in 1994 and then went public in 1999, and numerous acquisitions have since been made to fill the gaps in Wesco’s geographical and product coverage. Today, the firm primarily distributes electrical, networking, security, and utility equipment used in the construction and repair of structures such as offices, data centers, power transmission lines, and manufacturing plants. Wesco has operations around the globe but generates the majority of its revenue in the United States.