Metalworking and MRO supplies distributor MSC Industrial Supply reported July 1 the financial results for its 2026 fiscal third quarter, which spanned March through May.

The figures were led by a solid acceleration in daily sales growth alongside gross margin that modestly outperformed company and market expectations.

On MDM’s 2026 Top Distributors Lists, MSC was No. 9 for Industrial Supplies, No. 7 for Industrial MRO, No. 5 for Fasteners and No. 9 for Safety.

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Melville, NY-based MSC posted 3Q sales of $1.047 billion — up 7.8% year-over-year, with average daily sales up by that same amount, which exceeded 5-7% expected growth the company shared in its guidance a quarter earlier, attributed to both price and volume growth. Meanwhile, gross margin of 41.1% likewise topped MSC’s guidance of 41.0% and matched 2Q, primarily attributed to price/cost and customer mix.

“Our fiscal 3Q results that exceeded expectations provide evidence that we are fundamentally doing more with less and taking the right steps,” said Martina McIsaac, who succeeded ERik Gershwind as CEO on Jan. 1. Underpinning this improved performance was strength in the Core Customer, which continued to outperform the total company, and notable improvement in National Accounts. I am grateful for the hard work and dedication of our team members that has allowed us to advance the strategic changes being made to strengthen the business.”

After hovering in low single-digits from October 2025 through February 2026, MSC’s average daily sales accelerated to 5.6% in March and jumped to 10.5% in April before decelerating to 8.1% in May, and the company’s preliminary figure for June showed ~7% growth.

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The company’s operational statistics showed that pricing comprised 720 basis points of the 7.8% ADS growth, with volume contributing 50 bps, flipping sequentially from a 40-point decline in 2Q. Year-to-date through 3Q/May, MSC’s pricing was up 6.0% from a year earlier and volume was down 1.2%.

By customer type in 3Q, MSC’s national accounts (37% of total) grew 2.9% YoY; public sector (9%) fell 5.2%; and core/other (54%) grew 6.4%.

By end market in 3Q, manufacturing grew 3.5% and non-manufacturing grew 5.0%.

MSC’s 3Q operating profit of $107 million jumped approximately 29.0% YoY as margin expanded 170 basis points to 10.2%, while net profit of $80 million likewise jumped 41.4%.

Other Stats from MSC’s 3Q

• eCommerce comprised 63.7% of MSC’s 3Q sales — trailing 1Q’s 64.1%
• Total headcount ended 3Q at 7,052 — down 3.3% YoY and essentially identical to 2Q. Field sales headcount ended 3Q at 2,496 — down 8.2% YoY and up 0.9% from 2Q.
• MSC ended 3Q with 30,790 installed vending units — up 7.1% YoY and up 1.2% from 2Q
• MSC ended 3Q with 426 active In-Plant programs — up from 399 a year earlier and 423 at the end of 2Q

4Q Guidance

For MSC’s fiscal 4Q26 — which spans June 1-Aug. 29 — the company expects average daily sales growth of 6.5-8.5% YoY and adjusted operating margin of 10.0-10.8%.