Core & Main Inc. Class A Common Stock (CNM)

FairStock Score: 49/100 — MIXED

Key Financials

AI Analysis

AI-generated, general educational analysis — not personal investment advice.

I look for businesses that earn high returns on capital, generate cash, and sell at a price that leaves room for error. Core & Main distributes essential water and fire-protection products, a business with recurring repair-and-replacement demand and 5,600 employees. In fiscal 2025, the year ended 2026-02-01, it earned $441.0M on $7.6B of revenue, up from $411.0M and $7.4B in fiscal 2024. In fiscal Q2 2026, the quarter ended 2026-08-02, net income was $144.0M versus $134.0M in fiscal Q2 2025, while revenue was roughly flat at $2.1B. FairStock calculates ROE of 23.56%, but ROCE of only 7.13% and debt-to-equity of 1.31 tell me leverage flatters equity returns. Free cash flow is $628.0M, an 8.0% FCF yield, which is attractive. Yet at the 2026-10-13 close of $40.82, FairStock's P/E is 16.80, P/B is 3.71, EV/EBITDA is 11.01, and PEG is 2.25. The Graham Number is $24.54, giving a negative 66.34% margin of safety. Altman Z-score 1.94 and Piotroski 6/9 suggest moderate financial risk, not a fortress. The Lynch-style FAST GROWER label reflects 64.2% annual profit growth over five years and 16.0% revenue growth, but recent numbers are much slower. This is a decent distribution business with recurring demand and cash generation, but the price asks for continued growth and the balance sheet reduces my comfort. I would want a wider discount before calling it a value opportunity.

In plain English: Core & Main sells pipes, valves, hydrants and other products used in water, wastewater, storm drainage and fire protection systems. The company makes money and produces strong cash flow, but sales have been nearly flat recently and it uses a fair amount of debt. At the recent share price, the stock looks expensive compared with its book value and a conservative value estimate.

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Data as of 2026-10-13 close · note generated 2026-10-15 · model deepseek-flash

Sources (SEC EDGAR): fiscal Q2 2026 10-Q (period ended 2026-08-02) · fiscal Q1 2026 10-Q (period ended 2026-05-03) · fiscal Q3 2025 10-Q (period ended 2025-11-02) · fiscal Q2 2025 10-Q (period ended 2025-08-03) · FY2025 10-K (period ended 2026-02-01) · FY2024 10-K (period ended 2025-02-02) · FY2023 10-K (period ended 2024-01-28)

Fundamentals from company filings and market-data providers; prices are end-of-day, not real-time. AI-generated analysis is general and educational — not personal investment advice. Scoring methodology · Score test · Disclaimer