Shares of MSC Industrial Direct Co. (NYSE: MSM) plummeted 7.23% in Thursday's pre-market trading session following the release of the company's fiscal second-quarter earnings report. The industrial supply distributor's mixed results and cautious outlook for the coming quarter appear to have rattled investors.

For the quarter ended March 1, 2025, MSC Industrial reported adjusted earnings per share of $0.72, surpassing analyst estimates of $0.68. However, this figure represents a significant 38.98% decrease from $1.18 per share in the same quarter last year. The company's net sales for the quarter came in at $891.7 million, falling short of the consensus estimate of $899.5 million and declining 4.66% year-over-year from $935.3 million.

Adding to investor concerns, MSC Industrial's operating margin contracted to 7.0% from 9.7% in the prior-year quarter, reflecting the challenging operating environment. The company's CEO, Erik Gershwind, acknowledged the difficulties, stating, "During our fiscal second quarter, we continued expanding our solutions footprint, maintained momentum in the Public Sector, and completed important milestones in reenergizing our core customer growth rate. Amid a challenging operating environment with industrial demand at low levels, we generated solid results that landed within our guidance range." Looking ahead, MSC Industrial provided a cautious outlook for its fiscal third quarter, projecting year-over-year average daily sales growth between -2.0% and 0.0%, suggesting ongoing challenges in the near term.