Foster L B Co (FSTR) stock analysis

P/E below its 5-year median

Foster L B's P/E of 32.8 is below its own 5-year median of 36.0.

P/E above the industry

Foster L B's P/E of 32.8 is above the Wholesale Trade-durable Goods median of 20.3.

EV/EBITDA above its 5-year median

Foster L B's EV/EBITDA of 12.4 is above its 5-year median of 12.1.

P/B above the industry

Foster L B's price-to-book of 2.39 is above the Wholesale Trade-durable Goods median of 2.15.

Trading above fair value

The share price of $42.31 is above our fair value estimate of $36.11.

Margin of safety under 20%

The price is 17.2% above fair value, so there is no margin of safety.

Revenue growing under 10% a year

Revenue grew 2.8% a year over the last three fiscal years, short of the 10% we look for.

EPS growth over 3 years

Needs positive EPS three years ago and today.

Earnings growth accelerating

Net income grew 182% over the last twelve months, against a 5-year average of -0.1% a year.

Growing faster than the industry

Revenue grew 15.8% over the last twelve months; the Wholesale Trade-durable Goods median is 8.4%.

Guidance issued

The latest outlook (2026 Full Year Net sales, Aug 10, 2026) was issued for the first time, so it neither adds nor takes away points.

Gross margin slipping

Gross margin was 20.9% over the last twelve months, against 21.8% a year earlier.

Return on equity under 15%

Return on equity was 7.6% over the last twelve months and averaged 1.1% over five years; we look for 15% on both.

Return on capital under 10%

Return on invested capital was 7.2%, below the 10% that usually covers the cost of capital.

Return on equity below the industry

Foster L B's return on equity of 7.6% is below the Wholesale Trade-durable Goods median of 7.6%.

Earnings shrank over 5 years

Net income shrank 0.1% a year on average over the last five fiscal years.

Net margin above its 5-year average

Net margin was 2.3% over the last twelve months, against a 5-year average of 0.3%.

Net margin above the industry

Foster L B's net margin of 2.3% is above the Wholesale Trade-durable Goods median of 1.9%.

Low debt

Debt is 15.4% of shareholders' equity, under the 40% we consider low.

Debt falling against equity

Debt to equity fell from 25.5% five years ago to 15.4%.

Debt covered by cash flow

Operating cash flow over the last twelve months equals 185% of total debt.

Interest coverage

Interest expense is not reported separately.

Short-term assets cover short-term debts

Current assets are 1.89 times current liabilities.

Low bankruptcy risk

The Altman Z-score is 5.15; above 3 is the safe zone and below 1.8 the distress zone.

No dividend

Foster L B has not paid a dividend in the last twelve months.

Yield against Treasuries

No dividend.

Yield against the market

No dividend.

Dividend stability

No dividend.

Earnings cover

No dividend.

Cash-flow cover

No dividend.