Laser Focus World is an industry bedrock—first published in 1965 and still going strong. We publish original articles about cutting-edge advances in lasers, optics, photonics, sensors, and quantum technologies, as well as test and measurement, and the shift currently underway to usher in the photonic integrated circuits, optical interconnects, and copackaged electronics and photonics to deliver the speed and efficiency essential for data centers of the future.

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Editorial Advisory Board

  • Professor Andrea M. Armani, University of Southern California
  • Ruti Ben-Shlomi, Ph.D., LightSolver
  • James Butler, Ph.D., Hamamatsu
  • Natalie Fardian-Melamed, Ph.D., Columbia University
  • Justin Sigley, Ph.D., AmeriCOM
  • Professor Birgit Stiller, Max Planck Institute for the Science of Light, and Leibniz University of Hannover
  • Professor Stephen Sweeney, University of Glasgow
  • Mohan Wang, Ph.D., University of Oxford
  • Professor Xuchen Wang, Harbin Engineering University
  • Professor Stefan Witte, Delft University of Technology

Q2 Earnings Roundup: Lennox (NYSE:LII) And The Rest Of The HVAC and Water Systems Segment

LII Cover Image

Earnings results often indicate what direction a company will take in the months ahead. With Q2 behind us, let’s have a look at Lennox (NYSE: LII) and its peers.

Many HVAC and water systems companies sell essential, non-discretionary infrastructure for buildings. Since the useful lives of these water heaters and vents are fairly standard, these companies have a portion of predictable replacement revenue. In the last decade, trends in energy efficiency and clean water are driving innovation that is leading to incremental demand. On the other hand, new installations for these companies are at the whim of residential and commercial construction volumes, which tend to be cyclical and can be impacted heavily by economic factors such as interest rates.

The 9 hvac and water systems stocks we track reported a strong Q2. As a group, revenues beat analysts’ consensus estimates by 1.4% while next quarter’s revenue guidance was 14.3% below.

In light of this news, share prices of the companies have held steady as they are up 3.6% on average since the latest earnings results.

Lennox (NYSE: LII)

Based in Texas and founded over a century ago, Lennox (NYSE: LII) is a climate control solutions company offering heating, ventilation, air conditioning, and refrigeration (HVACR) goods.

Lennox reported revenues of $1.50 billion, up 3.4% year on year. This print exceeded analysts’ expectations by 2.5%. Overall, it was a stunning quarter for the company with an impressive beat of analysts’ EBITDA estimates.

Lennox Total Revenue

Unsurprisingly, the stock is down 13.8% since reporting and currently trades at $533.83.

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

Best Q2: Northwest Pipe (NASDAQ: NWPX)

Playing a large role in the Integrated Pipeline (IPL) project in Texas to deliver ~350 million gallons of water per day, Northwest Pipe (NASDAQ: NWPX) is a manufacturer of pipeline systems for water infrastructure.

Northwest Pipe reported revenues of $133.2 million, up 2.8% year on year, outperforming analysts’ expectations by 10.1%. The business had an incredible quarter with a beat of analysts’ EPS and EBITDA estimates.

Northwest Pipe Total Revenue

Northwest Pipe achieved the biggest analyst estimates beat among its peers. The market seems happy with the results as the stock is up 24% since reporting. It currently trades at $53.05.

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

Weakest Q2: CSW (NASDAQ: CSW)

With over two centuries of combined operations manufacturing and supplying, CSW (NASDAQ: CSW) offers special chemicals, coatings, sealants, and lubricants for various industries.

CSW reported revenues of $263.6 million, up 16.6% year on year, falling short of analysts’ expectations by 5.2%. It was a disappointing quarter as it posted a significant miss of analysts’ EBITDA and EPS estimates.

CSW delivered the fastest revenue growth but had the weakest performance against analyst estimates in the group. As expected, the stock is down 4.9% since the results and currently trades at $255.34.

Read our full analysis of CSW’s results here.

Trane Technologies (NYSE: TT)

With low-pressure heating systems as its first product, Trane (NYSE: TT) designs, manufactures, and sells HVAC and refrigeration systems, the former to commercial and residential building customers and the latter to commercial truck manufacturers.

Trane Technologies reported revenues of $5.75 billion, up 8.3% year on year. This print met analysts’ expectations. Overall, it was a satisfactory quarter as it also produced a decent beat of analysts’ adjusted operating income estimates.

The stock is down 13.5% since reporting and currently trades at $407.50.

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

Zurn Elkay (NYSE: ZWS)

Claiming to have saved more than 30 billion gallons of water, Zurn Elkay (NYSE: ZWS) provides water management solutions to various industries.

Zurn Elkay reported revenues of $444.5 million, up 7.9% year on year. This result topped analysts’ expectations by 4.5%. Overall, it was a stunning quarter as it also logged a solid beat of analysts’ adjusted operating income estimates and an impressive beat of analysts’ EBITDA estimates.

The stock is up 22.5% since reporting and currently trades at $46.95.

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

Market Update

As a result of the Fed’s rate hikes in 2022 and 2023, inflation has come down from frothy levels post-pandemic. The general rise in the price of goods and services is trending towards the Fed’s 2% goal as of late, which is good news. The higher rates that fought inflation also didn't slow economic activity enough to catalyze a recession. So far, soft landing. This, combined with recent rate cuts (half a percent in September 2024 and a quarter percent in November 2024) have led to strong stock market performance in 2024. The icing on the cake for 2024 returns was Donald Trump’s victory in the U.S. Presidential Election in early November, sending major indices to all-time highs in the week following the election. Still, debates around the health of the economy and the impact of potential tariffs and corporate tax cuts remain, leaving much uncertainty around 2025.

Want to invest in winners with rock-solid fundamentals? Check out our Top 5 Growth Stocks and add them to your watchlist. These companies are poised for growth regardless of the political or macroeconomic climate.

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