Quarterly earnings results are a good time to check in on a company’s progress, especially compared to its peers in the same sector. Today we are looking at Graco (NYSE:GGG) and the best and worst performers in the gas and liquid handling industry.

Gas and liquid handling companies possess the technical know-how and specialized equipment to handle valuable (and sometimes dangerous) substances. Lately, water conservation and carbon capture–which requires hydrogen and other gasses as well as specialized infrastructure–have been trending up, creating new demand for products such as filters, pumps, and valves. On the other hand, gas and liquid handling companies are at the whim of economic cycles. Consumer spending and interest rates, for example, can greatly impact the industrial production that drives demand for these companies’ offerings.

The 12 gas and liquid handling stocks we track reported a mixed Q2. As a group, revenues missed analysts’ consensus estimates by 0.9%.

Inflation progressed towards the Fed's 2% goal recently, leading the Fed to reduce its policy rate by 50bps (half a percent or 0.5%) in September 2024. This is the first cut in four years. While CPI (inflation) readings have been supportive lately, employment measures have bordered on worrisome. The markets will be debating whether this rate cut's timing (and more potential ones in 2024 and 2025) is ideal for supporting the economy or a bit too late for a macro that has already cooled too much.

In light of this news, gas and liquid handling stocks have held steady with share prices up 4.6% on average since the latest earnings results.

Graco (NYSE:GGG)

Founded in 1926, Graco (NYSE:GGG) is an industrial company specializing in the development and manufacturing of fluid-handling systems and products.

Graco reported revenues of $553.2 million, down 1.1% year on year. This print fell short of analysts’ expectations by 1.6%. Overall, it was a slower quarter for the company with a miss of analysts’ Contractor revenue estimates.

“Strength in the Contractor segment this quarter was not enough to offset declines elsewhere, resulting in overall sales performance that was below our expectations," said Mark Sheahan, Graco's President and CEO.

Interestingly, the stock is up 5.5% since reporting and currently trades at $85.56.

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

Best Q2: SPX Technologies (NYSE:SPXC)

SPX Technologies (NYSE:SPXC) is an industrial conglomerate catering to the energy, manufacturing, automotive, and aerospace sectors.

SPX Technologies reported revenues of $501.3 million, up 18.4% year on year, outperforming analysts’ expectations by 2.2%. The business had a stunning quarter with an impressive beat of analysts’ organic revenue estimates.