Stanley Black & Decker was formed from the combination of Stanley Works and Black & Decker in 2010. The company's headquarters is in New Britain, Connecticut, where Stanley has been based. The company generated approximately $15.4 billion in 2024 revenue. SWK operates within a divisional structure, with approximately 85% of revenue coming from the Tools and Storage segment, about 15% from the Industrial segments. Approximately 62% percent of revenue is generated in the U.S. The company has now paid a dividend for 148 consecutive years and raised it for 57 consecutive years. Key brands include: Stanley, Craftsman, DeWalt, Black & Decker, Cub Cadet, and Troy-Built. The Tools & Outdoor segment is approximately 49% power tools; 28% hand tools; storage, and accessories; and 23% outdoor equipment. The Industrial segment is 49% automotive, 34% general industrial and 17% aerospace. The company divested the Infrastructure business in April 2024.

The major stock indices are all lower at midday on Friday, teeing up a week of losses to a degree not seen since September of 2024. Payrolls data released this morning initially led stock futures higher, but that did not hold once the market opened. Worries remain, or are increasing, about volatile developments related to inflation, interest rates, trade wars, and geopolitical events. Futures contracts after the payrolls report this morning suggested a 97% probability that the Fed will maintain the 4.25%-4.5% funds target on March 19, compared with 91% before the report.

Stanley Black & Decker was formed from the combination of Stanley Works and Black & Decker in 2010. The company's headquarters is in New Britain, Connecticut, where Stanley has been based. The company generated approximately $15.7 billion in 2023 revenue. SWK operates within a divisional structure, with approximately 85% of revenue coming from the Tools and Storage segment, about 15% from the Industrial segments. Approximately 62% percent of revenue is generated in the U.S. The company has now paid a dividend for 148 consecutive years and raised it for 57 consecutive years. Key brands include: Stanley, Craftsman, DeWalt, Black & Decker, Cub Cadet, and Troy-Built. The Tools & Outdoor segment is approximately 48% power tools; 30% hand tools; storage, and accessories; and 22% outdoor equipment. The Industrial segment is 75% engineered fastening and 25% infrastructure. The company divested the Infrastructure business in April 2024.

Last week, the Dow Jones Industrial Average fell 1.8%, the S&P 500 dropped 0.6%, and Nasdaq gained a mere 0.3%. But for the year, the Dow is higher by 16%, the S&P is up 27%, and the Nasdaq has popped 33%. If we were looking for results that aligned any better with current insider-sentiment data, we'd need to dig deep. Indeed, last week showed that stocks are priced at levels that may well be consider 'dear,' but nonetheless are not likely to plummet over the final weeks of 2024. Insiders have moved to the sidelines for multiples weeks, but in so doing have not tapped out by selling at a worrisome level. Instead, they have booked some reasonable end-of-year gains, but stayed in the game enough to show that the sky is not falling, nor it is likely to fall any time soon. By way of data evidence, all of the major eight-week sell/buy ratios from Vickers Stock Research are within the neutral zone that runs from 2.00 to 6.00. On a sector basis, insider buying was the greatest in Energy last week, with shares valued at $11 million bought versus less than $6 million sold. Meanwhile, selling was the greatest in Technology over the last week, with shares valued at $485 million sold versus less than $400,000 bought. This week, analysts at Vickers highlighted insider transactions of interest at Ibotta Inc. (NYSE: IBTA) and The Scotts Miracle-Gro Co. (NYSE: SMG).