As the Q1 earnings season comes to a close, it’s time to take stock of this quarter’s best and worst performers in the specialty equipment distributors industry, including Custom Truck One Source (NYSE: CTOS) and its peers.

Historically, specialty equipment distributors have boasted deep selection and expertise in sometimes narrow areas like single-use packaging or unique lighting equipment. Additionally, the industry has evolved to include more automated industrial equipment and machinery over the last decade, driving efficiencies and enabling valuable data collection. Specialty equipment distributors whose offerings keep up with these trends can take share in a still-fragmented market, but like the broader industrials sector, this space is at the whim of economic cycles that impact the capital spending and manufacturing propelling industry volumes.

The 8 specialty equipment distributors stocks we track reported a satisfactory Q1. As a group, revenues beat analysts’ consensus estimates by 1.8% while next quarter’s revenue guidance was in line.

In light of this news, share prices of the companies have held steady as they are up 2.8% on average since the latest earnings results.

Custom Truck One Source (NYSE: CTOS)

Inspired by a family gas station, Custom Truck One Source (NYSE: CTOS) is a distributor of trucks and heavy equipment.

Custom Truck One Source reported revenues of $461.6 million, up 9.3% year on year. This print exceeded analysts’ expectations by 1.1%. Overall, it was an exceptional quarter for the company with a beat of analysts’ EPS and EBITDA estimates.

“In the first quarter, we achieved record first-quarter revenue and delivered substantial year-over-year growth in revenue and Adjusted EBITDA of 9% and 33%, respectively. The sustained performance in our core T&D markets continues to be the primary driver of performance within our SER segment and for the Company as a whole. For the quarter, our rental fleet achieved average utilization of 81.4%, up 370 basis points versus the first quarter of last year. We ended the quarter with total OEC of $1.66 billion, the highest in our history, which should support our expected growth within SER in 2026,” said Ryan McMonagle, Chief Executive Officer of CTOS.

Custom Truck One Source scored the highest full-year guidance raise of the whole group. Unsurprisingly, the stock is up 16.9% since reporting and currently trades at $10.27.

Is now the time to buy Custom Truck One Source? Access our full analysis of the earnings results here, it’s free.

Best Q1: Richardson Electronics (NASDAQ: RELL)

Founded in 1947, Richardson Electronics (NASDAQ: RELL) is a distributor of power grid and microwave tubes as well as consumables related to those products.

Richardson Electronics reported revenues of $55.47 million, up 3.1% year on year, outperforming analysts’ expectations by 4.4%. The business had an incredible quarter with a beat of analysts’ EPS and EBITDA estimates.

The market seems happy with the results as the stock is up 31% since reporting. It currently trades at $15.40.

Is now the time to buy Richardson Electronics? Access our full analysis of the earnings results here, it’s free.

Weakest Q1: SiteOne (NYSE: SITE)

Known for distributing John Deere tractors and LESCO turf care products, SiteOne Landscape Supply (NYSE: SITE) provides landscaping products and services to professionals, including irrigation, lighting, and nursery supplies.

SiteOne reported revenues of $940.1 million, flat year on year, falling short of analysts’ expectations by 4.2%. It was a disappointing quarter as it posted a significant miss of analysts’ revenue and adjusted operating income estimates.

SiteOne delivered the weakest performance against analyst estimates in the group. As expected, the stock is down 27.1% since the results and currently trades at $104.25.

Read our full analysis of SiteOne’s results here.

Karat Packaging (NASDAQ: KRT)

Founded as Lollicup, Karat Packaging (NASDAQ: KRT) distributes and manufactures environmentally-friendly disposable foodservice packaging solutions.

Karat Packaging reported revenues of $116.9 million, up 12.9% year on year. This print topped analysts’ expectations by 3.5%. Overall, it was a very strong quarter as it also logged a solid beat of analysts’ EBITDA estimates.

The stock is down 3.8% since reporting and currently trades at $29.26.

Read our full, actionable report on Karat Packaging here, it’s free.

Herc (NYSE: HRI)

Formerly a subsidiary of Hertz Corporation and with a logo that still bears some similarities to its former parent, Herc Holdings (NYSE: HRI) provides equipment rental and related services to a wide range of industries.

Herc reported revenues of $1.14 billion, up 32.3% year on year. This number surpassed analysts’ expectations by 5.3%. Aside from that, it was a satisfactory quarter as it also logged a beat of analysts’ EPS estimates but full-year revenue guidance missing analysts’ expectations significantly.

Herc scored the biggest analyst estimate beat and fastest revenue growth, but had the weakest full-year guidance update among its peers. The stock is up 13.6% since reporting and currently trades at $141.57.

Read our full, actionable report on Herc here, it’s free.

Market Update

Late in 2025 into early 2026, there was hand-wringing around artificial intelligence. For software companies, the fear was that AI would erode pricing power and compress margins as new tools made it easier to replicate what once required expensive enterprise platforms. Crypto investors had their own version of the same anxiety: if AI agents could trade, allocate capital, and manage wallets autonomously, what exactly was the long-term value of today’s crypto infrastructure?

These concerns triggered a noticeable rotation away from these sectors and into safer havens. But markets rarely dwell on one narrative for long. Spring 2026 came, and the focus shifted abruptly from technological disruption to geopolitical risk. The US’ conflict with Iran became the dominant driver of market psychology, and when geopolitics takes center stage, the script changes quickly. Investors stop debating growth rates and start worrying about oil supply, inflation, and global stability.

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