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Insteel Industries
(NYSE:IIIN)
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Rating:68Neutral
Price Target:
$33.00
▲(8.45% Upside)
Action:Reiterated
Date:10/23/26
The score is driven primarily by a very strong, low-risk balance sheet and reasonable shareholder-friendly valuation (mid-teens P/E and ~3.7% yield). These positives are tempered by compressed margins, uneven cash-flow consistency, and a mixed near-term outlook from the latest earnings call, where cost inflation and margin pressure remain key risks despite supportive end-market demand pockets and efficiency initiatives.
Positive Factors
Debt-Free Balance Sheet
An essentially debt-free balance sheet gives Insteel flexibility to withstand cyclical construction conditions while funding operations and investments internally. Low leverage limits interest burden and refinancing risk, allowing management to pursue capacity and efficiency projects without materially weakening financial resilience.
Negative Factors
Margin Compression
Severely reduced gross margin shows that Insteel is not yet consistently passing through inflation in steel, freight, and conversion costs. Persistent spread pressure can constrain earnings even when sales grow, making profitability dependent on pricing actions, utilization, and cost reductions.
Read all positive and negative factors
Positive Factors
Negative Factors
Debt-Free Balance Sheet
An essentially debt-free balance sheet gives Insteel flexibility to withstand cyclical construction conditions while funding operations and investments internally. Low leverage limits interest burden and refinancing risk, allowing management to pursue capacity and efficiency projects without materially weakening financial resilience.
Read all positive factors
Insteel Industries (IIIN) vs. SPDR S&P 500 ETF (SPY)
Market Cap
$537.58M
Dividend Yield4.03%
Average Volume (3M)154.17K
Price to Earnings (P/E)18.3
Beta (1Y)0.76
Revenue Growth14.17%
EPS Growth-27.88%
CountryUS
Employees1,007
SectorIndustrials
Sector Strength72
IndustryManufacturing - Metal Fabrication
Share Statistics
EPS (TTM)1.52
Shares Outstanding19,358,248
10 Day Avg. Volume186,032
30 Day Avg. Volume154,167
Financial Highlights & Ratios
PEG Ratio-0.70
Price to Book (P/B)1.52
Price to Sales (P/S)0.78
P/FCF Ratio23.16
Enterprise Value/Market Cap1.07
Enterprise Value/Revenue0.78
Enterprise Value/Gross Profit7.59
Enterprise Value/Ebitda10.25
Forecast
1Y Price TargetN/A
Price Target UpsideN/A
Rating ConsensusN/A
Number of Analyst Covering0
EPS Forecast (FY)2.42
Revenue Forecast (FY)$794.00M
Insteel Industries Business Overview & Revenue Model
Company Description
Insteel Industries, Inc., along with its various subsidiaries, focuses on the manufacturing and commercialization of steel wire reinforcement products specifically for concrete construction applications. The company's primary offerings include pre...
How the Company Makes Money
Insteel makes money primarily by manufacturing and selling steel wire reinforcing products to customers in construction-related end markets. Its core revenue streams are (1) sales of prestressed concrete strand (PC strand), which is used by precas...
Insteel Industries Earnings Call Summary
Earnings Call Date:Oct 22, 2026
(Q4-2026)
| % Change Since: |
Next Earnings Date:Jan 21, 2027
Earnings Call Sentiment Neutral
The call presented a mixed outlook. The company reported strong liquidity, improved operating cash flow, continued infrastructure and data center demand, growing engineered structural mesh activity, and significant planned investments for future growth. However, these positives were offset by a sharp decline in earnings and gross margins, persistent input-cost inflation, wire rod supply constraints, tariff and import pressures, weak housing, soft private nonresidential construction, and near-term margin pressure. Management remained constructive about fiscal 2027, but the overall tone was balanced.Positive Updates
Higher Quarterly Sales and Shipments
Fourth-quarter net sales were $209 million, up 17.9% from $177 million in the prior-year period. Total shipments increased 10.6% year over year and 2.5% sequentially. On a comparable 13-week basis, shipments increased 2.2% from the prior-year quarter. Comparisons benefited from the 14-week fourth quarter in fiscal 2026 versus 13 weeks in the comparable periods.
Negative Updates
Quarterly Earnings Declined
Fourth-quarter net earnings were $7.7 million, or $0.40 per diluted share, compared with $14.6 million, or $0.74 per diluted share, in the prior-year quarter. Results included $700 thousand of restructuring charges related to the welded wire operations consolidation, reducing net earnings by $0.03 per diluted share.
Read all updates
Q4-2026 Updates
Positive
Negative
Higher Quarterly Sales and Shipments
Fourth-quarter net sales were $209 million, up 17.9% from $177 million in the prior-year period. Total shipments increased 10.6% year over year and 2.5% sequentially. On a comparable 13-week basis, shipments increased 2.2% from the prior-year quarter. Comparisons benefited from the 14-week fourth quarter in fiscal 2026 versus 13 weeks in the comparable periods.
Read all positive updates
Company Guidance
For fiscal 27, Insteel expects its effective tax rate to run around 23%; fiscal 27 capital expenditures are expected to total approximately 30 million, including approximately $20 million for a new engineered structural mesh production line; infrastructure applications are expected to see a repeat performance from 2027, with state and federal funding fairly flat in 2027 but at healthy levels; data center momentum is expected to continue through 2027, while a recovery may be underway in the private nonresidential market; housing has no reasonable prospect for a meaningful recovery in 2027, although further deterioration is not expected; engineered structural mesh is expected to continue growing in 2027 and beyond; elevated input costs and seasonally lower demand are expected to continue to pressure margins in the near term, while the Upper Sandusky closure, welded wire consolidation, recently announced price increase, savings, and efficiency gains should provide additional margin support and position the company to improve profitability as it moves through the year; inventory balances are expected to remain near current levels through the first quarter, and no working capital build or inventory build in 2027 is expected beyond seasonally weaker periods.Insteel Industries Financial Statement Overview
Summary
Income Statement
64
Positive
Balance Sheet
90
Very Positive
Cash Flow
55
Neutral
| Breakdown | Sep 2026 | Sep 2025 | Sep 2024 | Sep 2023 | Sep 2022 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
Income Statement | |||||
| Total Revenue | 739.51M | 647.71M | 529.20M | 649.19M | 826.83M |
| Gross Profit | 75.68M | 93.44M | 49.63M | 65.40M | 197.31M |
| EBITDA | 56.09M | 72.25M | 40.79M | 55.15M | 176.30M |
| Net Income | 29.55M | 41.02M | 19.30M | 32.41M | 125.01M |
Balance Sheet | |||||
| Total Assets | 480.39M | 462.65M | 422.55M | 447.51M | 471.75M |
| Cash, Cash Equivalents and Short-Term Investments | 37.48M | 38.63M | 111.54M | 125.67M | 48.32M |
| Total Debt | 0.00 | 3.90M | 1.69M | 1.94M | 1.57M |
| Total Liabilities | 100.78M | 91.12M | 71.70M | 66.01M | 82.00M |
| Stockholders Equity | 379.61M | 371.53M | 350.86M | 381.50M | 389.74M |
Cash Flow | |||||
| Free Cash Flow | 24.84M | 18.95M | 39.06M | 111.50M | -10.23M |
| Operating Cash Flow | 36.63M | 27.16M | 58.21M | 142.20M | 5.67M |
| Investing Cash Flow | -12.43M | -75.67M | -19.64M | -20.90M | -6.04M |
| Financing Cash Flow | -25.35M | -24.40M | -52.70M | -43.95M | -41.20M |
Insteel Industries Technical Analysis
Negative
30.43
Price Trends
30.14
Negative
30.23
Negative
31.01
Negative
Market Momentum
-0.16
Positive
32.63
Neutral
48.06
Neutral
Evaluating momentum and price trends is crucial in stock analysis to make informed investment decisions. For IIIN, the sentiment is Negative. The current price of 30.43 is above the 20-day moving average (MA) of 29.61, above the 50-day MA of 30.14, and below the 200-day MA of 31.01, indicating a bearish trend. The MACD of -0.16 indicates Positive momentum. The RSI at 32.63 is Neutral, neither overbought nor oversold. The STOCH value of 48.06 is Neutral, not indicating any strong overbought or oversold conditions. Overall, these indicators collectively point to a Negative sentiment for IIIN.
Insteel Industries Risk Analysis
Insteel Industries disclosed 17 risk factors in its most recent earnings report. Insteel Industries reported the most risks in the "Macro & Political" category.
Finance & Corporate - Financial and accounting risks. Risks related to the execution of corporate activity and strategy
Latest Risks Added 0 New Risks
Insteel Industries Peers Comparison
UnderperformOutperform
Sector (63)
Name | Overall Rating | Market Cap | P/E Ratio | ROE | Dividend Yield | Revenue Growth | EPS Growth |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
77 Outperform | $11.79B | 13.61 | 26.80% | 1.20% | 20.83% | 16.24% | |
75 Outperform | $3.14B | 18.94 | 16.19% | 1.21% | 18.44% | 54.40% | |
68 Neutral | $537.58M | 18.27 | 8.02% | 4.03% | 14.17% | -27.88% | |
63 Neutral | $10.79B | 15.43 | 7.44% | 2.01% | 2.89% | -14.66% | |
53 Neutral | $162.17M | -2.68 | -152.73% | 2.14% | 3.27% | -1069.57% | |
50 Neutral | $1.15B | -133.90 | -0.96% | ― | 14.47% | -220.54% | |
50 Neutral | $1.45B | -22.76 | -3.18% | 2.68% | 31.54% | -171.56% |
* Industrials Sector Average
IIIN
Insteel Industries
27.77
-1.77
-5.98%
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Insteel Industries Corporate Events
Business Operations and Strategy
Insteel Industries Consolidates Operations, Closing Ohio Facility
Negative
Aug 21, 2026
On August 21, 2026, Insteel Industries announced that it will close its welded wire reinforcement facility in Upper Sandusky, Ohio, shifting production to its other U.S. plants that have ample available capacity. Operations at the Ohio site are sc...
Business Operations and StrategyDividends
Insteel Industries Declares Quarterly Cash Dividend to Shareholders
Positive
Aug 11, 2026
On August 11, 2026, Insteel Industries Inc. announced that its board of directors declared a regular quarterly cash dividend of $0.03 per share of common stock. The dividend will be payable on September 25, 2026, to shareholders of record as of Se...
Glossary
BuyA stock rated as a "Buy" is expected to perform better than the overall market or a specific benchmark over the near-to-medium term. This rating suggests the stock is likely to deliver higher returns compared to other stocks in the same sector or market index. Note: This is not investment advice; please consult a financial advisor before making investment decisions.
HoldA stock rated as a "Hold" is expected to perform in line with the overall market or a specific benchmark. This rating indicates that the stock is neither particularly compelling nor unfavorable for investment. Note: This is not investment advice; please consult a financial advisor before making investment decisions.
SellA stock rated as a "Sell" is expected to perform worse than the overall market or a specific benchmark over the near-to-medium term. This rating suggests the stock may deliver lower returns compared to other stocks in the same sector or market index. Note: This is not investment advice; please consult a financial advisor before making investment decisions.
Disclaimer
This AI Analyst Stock Report is automatically generated by our AI systems using advanced algorithms and publicly available financial, technical, and market data. While the information provided aims to be accurate and insightful, it is intended for informational purposes only and should not be considered financial advice. Any content created by an AI (Artificial Intelligence) system may contain inaccuracies and/or contain errors. Investing in stocks carries inherent risks, and past performance is not indicative of future results. This report does not account for your personal financial circumstances, objectives, or risk tolerance. Always conduct your own research or consult with a qualified financial advisor before making investment decisions. The analysis and recommendations provided are based on historical and current data and may not fully reflect future market conditions or unexpected developments. Neither the creators of this report nor its affiliated entities guarantee the accuracy, completeness, or reliability of the information presented. Use this report at your own discretion and risk.