Topic: How To Invest

Q: Hi Pat: I would be interested in getting your thoughts on Lawson Products (LAWS on Nasdaq). Thanks.

Article Excerpt

A: Lawson Products, $25.90, symbol LAWS on Nasdaq (Shares outstanding: 8.9 million; Market cap: $229.8 million; www.tevapharm.com), is an industrial distributor of maintenance and repair products. Lawson carries a comprehensive line of goods. It also provides inventory management services to customers in the industrial, commercial, institutional and government maintenance, repair and operations (MRO) market. The company was founded by Sidney L. Port in 1952 and is headquartered in Chicago. Lawson’s products and services fall into several categories: automotive, chemicals, cutting tools and abrasives, electrical, fasteners, fluid power, hand tools, material handling, safety, shop supplies, storage equipment (plus inventory management and engineering services), technical information, and eBusiness and scanning systems. The company has distribution centers in North America, and ships to customers in all 50 states, Puerto Rico, Canada, Mexico and the Caribbean. Under its Kent Automotive brand, Lawson supplies products to collision and mechanical repair shops. In the three months ended June 30, 2017, Lawson’s revenue rose 8.2%, to $75.0 million from $69.3 million…