Amid the worst quarter since 2022 for the S&P 500 and Nasdaq, the FIN Fastener Stock Index lost 2.6%, besting a 2.8% loss by an index of related industrial stocks.
The S&P 500 is down by more than 4% since the start of the year as Trump administration trade policy uncertainty pummeled stocks.
Howmet Aerospace recorded the highest FINdex gain at 18.6%, driven by fresh demand for its fasteners as Boeing and other top aerospace companies scramble to replace capacity destroyed when a fire gutted an SPS Technologies factory in February. The sudden loss of critical fastener capacity hampers Boeing’s efforts to recover after output slumped last year due to multiple crises.
Howmet has the necessary certifications to produce some of the fasteners manufactured at the SPS factory, and CEO John Plant said the company is responding to customers for parts following the fire. Howmet would pass on any higher costs it would face for imported materials.
Other FINdex companies achieving gains during the tumultuous first quarter of 2025 include Carpenter Technology (up 6.7%), Fastenal (up 7.8%), MSC Industrial (up 4%), and Nucor (up 3.1%).
Chicago Rivet & Machine Co. recorded the largest FINdex loss in Q1, dropping 31% amid a toxic mixture of automotive and steel tariffs. Other FINdex companies reported a double-digit decline include Park-Ohio Holdings Corp. (down 17.7%) and Tree Island Steel (down 13.6%).
Markets loathe uncertainty, and the recent tariff rollout seems primed to deliver just that, said Michael Farr of the D.C.-based investment firm Farr, Miller & Washington.
“While rhetorical bombast can be very effective and indeed has been effective as a negotiating strategy for President Trump, a volatile political environment is upsetting to the stock market,” Farr stated.
Since the start of the year, the S&P 500 index is down 4.3%, while the tech-heavy Nasdaq index has fallen by 10.3%. The Dow Jones Industrial Average, which includes a narrower set of stocks, is down by almost 1%.
