Acme United rises 3.5% after quarterly results beat estimates and cost-cutting news

What happened

Acme United (ACU) rose 3.5% on October 27, 2026, after third-quarter results beat estimates and the company said closing its Marlborough facility will save over $1 million annually. The company reported third-quarter net sales of $58.0 million, up 18% from $49.1 million a year earlier, and quarterly earnings of $0.80 per share, 8.8% above the Zacks consensus of $0.71 per share. GlobeNewsWire and Seeking Alpha reported the results, and the company highlighted the facility-closure savings as part of its operating update.

How big was the move

The stock rose 3.5% on the day and rose 3.5% over the last five sessions, opening 2.5% above the previous close. Trading volume was 2.5 times its 20-day average, and the move was 2.3 times a typical daily move for this stock. The rise outperformed the Consumer Defensive sector median by 4.0 percentage points; the sector median on the day fell 0.6%. By contrast, the S&P 500 on the day rose 0.6% and the S&P 500 over five sessions rose 0.1%.

That pattern is consistent with the earnings release being the direct driver of the session move. In the past five years the stock had 103 sessions with a gain of at least 3.5%. Twenty trading days later the median result was a decline of 0.7%, and 49 of 103 were higher.

The technical picture

The stock traded 4.6% above its 20-day moving average and 5.2% above its 50-day moving average, and it stood 31.7% above its 200-day moving average. The 50-day average is above the 200-day average, a sign of an established uptrend, and the stock has been above the 200-day average for 113 consecutive trading days. It was 2.3% below the 52-week high.

Momentum indicators were mixed. The Relative Strength Index (14 days) was 66, which sits in a neutral range between 30 and 70. Over one month the stock rose 3.2%, over three months it rose 9.8%, and over one year it rose 67.1%, which is 53.4 percentage points ahead of the S&P 500. Volatility was 24% annualized over 60 days, lower than 99% of its own readings over five years, underscoring relatively low recent price turbulence. The stock’s market sensitivity was modest, with a beta of 0.37, meaning the stock tends to move less than the market.

Fundamentals and valuation

For the four quarters through September 30, 2026, revenue was $162.6 million, which declined 16.6% from a year earlier, though revenue growth one quarter earlier showed growth of 9.0%. Diluted earnings per share for the period were $2.72, which rose 11.5% from a year earlier. Gross margin was 40.4% (a year earlier: 39.5%), and operating margin was 7.1% (a year earlier: 7.2%). Free-cash-flow margin was 9.3% and return on invested capital was 6.8%. The balance sheet showed net debt of 0.0 times EBITDA, and share count over one year increased by 3.1%.

Valuation measures placed the stock at 24.2 times trailing earnings and 22.8 times price to forward earnings, with a free-cash-flow yield of 6.2%. The price to trailing earnings is higher than 86% of its own readings over the past five years, with the five-year median at 15.6 times earnings. Those metrics signal a premium valuation relative to Acme United’s recent history, even as profitability measures such as gross margin ticked modestly higher.

PromtFinance analytics painted a mixed profile. Quality scored 90 (Exceptional) and Momentum 100 (Exceptional), while Revisions were 81 (Strong) and Stability 87 (Strong). Value and Growth were weaker at 39 and 34, respectively, reflecting the stock’s strong technical momentum and quality metrics but limited value and growth characteristics on conventional measures.

Earnings and analyst expectations

On October 27, 2026, Acme United reported earnings per share of $0.80 against $0.73 expected, 8.8% above estimates. That result extended a streak to two consecutive quarters beating estimates; the average surprise over the last four reports is 32.4% above estimates. Typical two-day reactions after recent reports saw the stock rise 2.9%. The company’s next scheduled report is February 25, 2027.

Investors are likely to watch whether the company can sustain margin gains and convert the recent top-line improvement into consistent year-over-year revenue growth, given the four-quarter revenue decline and the stronger sequential trends reported in the latest quarter.

What to watch

• February 25, 2027: next scheduled earnings report.
• The company said closing its Marlborough facility will save over $1 million annually.
• Similar sessions in the past five years: In the past five years the stock had 103 sessions with a gain of at least 3.5%. Twenty trading days later the median result was a decline of 0.7%, and 49 of 103 were higher.
• Share count over one year increased by 3.1%.