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what it is
Douglas Dynamics makes and upfits truck gear for snow, ice, and work crews.
how it gets paid
Last year Douglas Dynamics made $656M in revenue.
why it's growing
Revenue grew 255.5% last year. Revenue rose 29% vs. prior year, and EPS rose 64%.
what just happened
$185M in quarterly revenue and $0.54 EPS showed the winter machine still prints money.
At a glance
B+ balance sheet — decent shape, but not bulletproof
55/100 earnings predictability — expect surprises
18.1x trailing p/e — priced about right
2.9% dividend yield — cash in your pocket every quarter
7.6% return on capital — nothing to write home about
xvary composite: 64/100 — average
What they do
Douglas Dynamics makes and upfits truck gear for snow, ice, and work crews.
You do not swap out a plow supplier the week a storm hits. Douglas has 1,673 employees and $196M of long-term debt. long-term debt → money owed later → so what: that debt is 17% of capital, so lenders are not running the place.
How they make money
$656M
annual revenue · their business grew +255.5% last year
total revenue
$656M
+255.5%
The products that matter
snow and ice removal equipment
Snowplows
core demand driver
This is the core product set, and the reported sales line tied to it was up 28.6% in Q4 2025. When snowfall cooperates, orders move fast.
winter-driven
salt and sand spreaders
Ice Control Attachments
inside the 87% bucket
This sits inside the 87% revenue mix attributed to Work Truck Attachments, which tells you how concentrated the company still is in snow and ice gear.
same customer base
installs equipment on trucks
Commercial Upfitting
$87M · 13% of mix
This $87M segment is the smaller piece of the business, but it matters because it adds non-winter work and keeps fleet relationships active outside peak snow season.
diversifier
Key numbers
$656M
annual revenue
This is the top line you are betting on, and it shows the business is big enough to matter but still small enough to wobble with weather.
18.1x
trailing p/e
You are paying 18.1 years of current earnings, which is not cheap for a seasonal industrial.
26.1%
gross margin
This tells you how much of each sales dollar stays after direct costs before overhead takes its cut.
2.9%
dividend yield
You get paid a 2.9% cash yield while waiting for winter to do the heavy lifting.
Financial health
B+
strength
- balance sheet grade B+ — solid but not elite
- risk rank 2 — safer than 80% of stocks
- price stability 60 / 100
- long-term debt $196M (17% of capital)
B+ — functional but not a standout on the balance sheet.
Total return vs. market
Return history isn't available for PLOW right now.
source: institutional data · return history unavailable
What just happened
beat estimates
$185M in quarterly revenue and $0.54 EPS showed the winter machine still prints money.
Revenue rose 29% vs. prior year, and EPS rose 64%. Gross margin was 26.1%, which kept the quarter from turning into a hardware clearance sale.
$185M
revenue
$0.54
eps
26.1%
gross margin
the number that mattered
26.1% gross margin mattered most because it tells you how much of the sales dollar survived direct costs.
source: company earnings report, 2026
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What could go wrong
The #1 risk here is a weak snow season. This is still a weather-linked equipment business, and the page's own segment mix shows 87% tied to Work Truck Attachments.
high
mild winter demand shock
Snowplows and spreaders do not sell on vibes. If snowfall disappoints, dealer orders can slow fast and the 87% Work Truck Attachments mix becomes concentration risk.
highest exposure: the largest revenue bucket on the page
high
guidance range is wide for a reason
Management's 2026 sales outlook is $710M–$760M. A $50M spread on a company this size means visibility is decent at best, not precise.
range risk: $50M between low and high outcomes
med
debt plus dividend leaves less room for error
Long-term debt sits at $196M, or 17% of capital, while the dividend yield is 2.9%. That combination is fine in a normal year and less comfortable in a soft one.
balance sheet pressure rises if demand slips
med
earnings can move more than the multiple suggests
Earnings predictability is only 55/100, and one estimate on this page shows revenue at $569M versus $656M in the prior year. This business does not produce smooth lines.
forecast error can make valuation look cheap or expensive in a hurry
A weak winter would hit the 87% equipment-heavy revenue bucket first, while the company still carries $196M of long-term debt and funds a 2.9% dividend.
source: institutional data · regulatory filings · risk analysis
Pay attention to
guidance
2026 sales midpoint
Management guided to $710M–$760M in net sales. The midpoint implies a rebound. Missing the low end would matter more than hitting the high end would impress.
demand trend
work truck attachments momentum
The main revenue bucket on this page posted +28.6% in the latest quarter. You want to see whether that was replenishment, true end-demand, or a weather-assisted spike.
balance sheet
debt versus cash returns
$196M of long-term debt is manageable now. The question is whether management keeps funding the 2.9% dividend from a stable earnings base or a lucky winter.
calendar
annual meeting on april 29
That is the next clean moment for shareholders to hear management address demand, dealer inventory, capital allocation, and how confident they really are in the 2026 setup.
Analyst rankings
earnings predictability
55 / 100
Earnings predictability sits near the middle. In human-speak, analysts do not trust this business to deliver smooth quarters.
risk rank
2
Risk rank of 2 means the balance sheet and business model are safer than many small caps, even if the earnings line is still seasonal.
source: institutional data
Institutional activity
institutional ownership data for PLOW is being compiled.
source: institutional data
Price targets
3-5 year target range
n/a
n/a
$38
current price
n/a
target midpoint · n/a from current
Want the deeper analysis?
The full deep dive: dcf model, scenario analysis, competitive moat breakdown, and quarterly tracking — everything on this page, taken further.
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