The end of an earnings season can be a great time to discover new stocks and assess how companies are handling the current business environment. Let’s take a look at how Applied Industrial (NYSE: AIT) and the rest of the engineered components and systems stocks fared in Q4.

Engineered components and systems companies possess technical know-how in sometimes narrow areas such as metal forming or intelligent robotics. Lately, automation and connected equipment collecting analyzable data have been trending, creating new demand. On the other hand, like the broader industrials sector, engineered components and systems companies are at the whim of economic cycles. Consumer spending and interest rates, for example, can greatly impact the industrial production that drives demand for these companies’ offerings.

The 13 engineered components and systems stocks we track reported a mixed Q4. As a group, revenues beat analysts’ consensus estimates by 2.2% while next quarter’s revenue guidance was 0.5% below.

Thankfully, share prices of the companies have been resilient as they are up 9% on average since the latest earnings results.

Applied Industrial (NYSE: AIT)

Formerly called The Ohio Ball Bearing Company, Applied Industrial (NYSE: AIT) distributes industrial products–everything from power tools to industrial valves–and services to a wide variety of industries.

Applied Industrial reported revenues of $1.16 billion, up 8.4% year on year. This print fell short of analysts’ expectations by 0.7%. Overall, it was a slower quarter for the company with a miss of analysts’ adjusted operating income estimates and a slight miss of analysts’ revenue estimates.

Neil A. Schrimsher, Applied’s President & Chief Executive Officer, commented, “During the second quarter we continued to effectively manage through an evolving but still mixed end-market backdrop while positioning the Company for stronger growth that we see ahead. Sales and EBITDA margins were in line with our guidance, and earnings grew modestly over the prior year. This is inclusive of greater than expected LIFO expense and muted December sales activity. Our teams responded with an ongoing focus on internal initiatives and channel execution. These efforts drove solid underlying gross margin and EBITDA margin performance when excluding the LIFO impact, particularly considering difficult prior-year comparisons as previously highlighted. In addition, we continued to see encouraging signs on the sales front with order growth continuing to build across both segments. We believe this positive momentum could translate more meaningfully to sales in the second half of our fiscal year, as reflected by organic sales trending up by a mid single-digit percent year over year month to date in January. Lastly, we remain active with capital deployment including ongoing share repurchases, as well as today’s announced 11% increase in our quarterly dividend and the bolt-on Service Center acquisition of Thompson Industrial Supply Inc.”

Interestingly, the stock is up 1.8% since reporting and currently trades at $286.57.

Read our full report on Applied Industrial here, it’s free.

Best Q4: Arrow Electronics (NYSE: ARW)

Founded as a single retail store, Arrow Electronics (NYSE: ARW) provides electronic components and enterprise computing solutions to businesses globally.

Arrow Electronics reported revenues of $8.75 billion, up 20.1% year on year, outperforming analysts’ expectations by 6.6%. The business had an incredible quarter with EPS guidance for next quarter exceeding analysts’ expectations and a solid beat of analysts’ EBITDA estimates.

The market seems happy with the results as the stock is up 11.2% since reporting. It currently trades at $156.92.

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

Weakest Q4: Mayville Engineering (NYSE: MEC)

Originally founded solely on tool and die manufacturing, Mayville Engineering Company (NYSE: MEC) specializes in metal fabrication, tube bending, and welding to be used in various industries.

Mayville Engineering reported revenues of $134.3 million, up 10.7% year on year, in line with analysts’ expectations. It was a disappointing quarter as it posted full-year EBITDA guidance missing analysts’ expectations.

As expected, the stock is down 2.9% since the results and currently trades at $20.50.

Read our full analysis of Mayville Engineering’s results here.

Worthington (NYSE: WOR)

Founded by a steel salesman, Worthington (NYSE: WOR) specializes in steel processing, pressure cylinders, and engineered cabs for commercial markets.

Worthington reported revenues of $378.7 million, up 24.4% year on year. This print beat analysts’ expectations by 8.6%. Overall, it was a strong quarter as it also recorded an impressive beat of analysts’ adjusted operating income estimates and a solid beat of analysts’ revenue estimates.

Worthington scored the biggest analyst estimates beat among its peers. The stock is up 6.7% since reporting and currently trades at $55.35.

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

NN (NASDAQ: NNBR)

Formerly known as Nuturn, NN (NASDAQ: NNBR) provides metal components, bearings, and plastic and rubber components to the automotive, aerospace, medical, and industrial sectors.

NN reported revenues of $104.7 million, down 1.7% year on year. This number missed analysts’ expectations by 0.6%. It was a softer quarter as it also produced full-year EBITDA guidance missing analysts’ expectations significantly and a significant miss of analysts’ EBITDA estimates.

NN delivered the highest full-year guidance raise but had the slowest revenue growth among its peers. The stock is up 1.3% since reporting and currently trades at $1.55.

Read our full, actionable report on NN 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.

Want to invest in winners with rock-solid fundamentals? Check out our Hidden Gem Stocks and add them to your watchlist. These companies are poised for growth regardless of the political or macroeconomic climate.