Industrial Giants Shine and Stumble: A Week of Turbulent Earnings

The Industrial Select Sector (XLI) rose +1.90% for the week ending Feb. 2, while the SPDR S&P 500 Trust ETF (SPY) climbed +1.42%.

Top Gainers: A Phenomenal Rise

The top five gainers in the industrial sector (stocks with a market cap of over $2B) all gained more than +14% each this week.

Plug Power (NASDAQ:PLUG) +37.06%. The Latham, N.Y.-based company’s shares surged the most on Wednesday (+19.30%) after Roth MKM upgraded the stock to Buy from Neutral citing confidence that the ramp-up of the company’s Georgia green hydrogen plant is going smoothly.

Symbotic (SYM) +23.05%. Shares of the company, which provides warehouse automation systems, shot up the most on Thursday +8.81%.

Saia (SAIA) +18.74%. The trucking company’s shares jumped +14.35% on Friday after fourth quarter results beat estimates.

McGrath RentCorp (MGRC) +15.69%. WillScot Mobile Mini (WSC) said on Monday that it was acquiring McGrath in a cash-and-stock deal worth $3.8B which sent the McGrath’s shares surging +10.74% on the day.

Vertiv (VRT) +14.98%. The company — which provides products and services for data centers and communication networks — saw its shares climb throughout the week, barring Wednesday.

Turbulent Tides: A Sharp Fall

This week’s top five decliners among industrial stocks (market cap of over $2B) all lost more than -7% each.

C.H. Robinson Worldwide (NASDAQ:CHRW) -15.17%. The trucking services provider’s stock fell -12.59% on Thursday after fourth quarter adjusted earnings missed estimates by a wide margin.

Exponent (EXPO) -11.55%. The engineering consulting company saw its shares tumble -12.83% on Friday after its mixed fourth quarter results on Thursday (post market).

Rockwell Automation (ROK) -11.55%. Shares of the industrial-technology company fell -17.56% on Wednesday after first-quarter results showed the negative effects of supply-chain constraints and high inventories at customers.

United Parcel Service (UPS) -10.95%. The stock fell -8.20% on Tuesday after the company posted a mixed Q4 earnings report and set full-year guidance below expectations.

Avis Budget (CAR) -7.21%. The shares of the car rental company dipped the most on Wednesday -4.26%.