A Fresh Look at an Old Favorite
article 08-19-2025

A Fresh Look at an Old Favorite

Senior Analyst Zach Weiss details the thesis for a long-time holding in Royce Premier Fund that is often the hidden force behind stronger structures.

TELL US
WHAT YOU
THINK

A company that we have held in Royce Premier Fund for almost 30 years, Simpson Manufacturing (NYSE: SSD) is the global leader in structural connectors, fasteners, and anchoring systems used to hold houses and buildings together. A company with its own lengthy history, Simpson was founded in California in the 1950s—and has devoted almost eight decades to building unmatched engineering credibility and trust with building inspectors, engineers, and contractors. These efforts have earned Simpson its position as the go-to brand for structural integrity across residential and commercial construction. Its products are mission critical to building safety, often determining whether structures pass inspection, despite representing less than 1% of total project costs. These factors, combined with a long track record of innovation and significant growth across its addressable markets, have made Simpson a compelling long-term fit for Premier. We expect earnings growth to accelerate over time as the company benefits from tightening building codes, realized synergies from its 2022 acquisition of ETANCO—a European fastener and anchoring specialist— and rising mass-timber adoption.

Simpson is also gaining market share in a still fragmented industry. Its volumes have outpaced U.S. housing starts by ~3% annually over the past decade. This outperformance reflects both increasingly strict building codes and the rising market share of large national homebuilders, who favor standardized, code-compliant solutions from trusted suppliers like Simpson. With nearly half of revenue tied to repair, remodel, or retrofit activities, the business remains resilient through housing cycles, while its capital-light model and high free cash flow conversion support steady reinvestment and capital returns.

“With nearly half of revenue tied to repair, remodel, or retrofit activities, the business remains resilient through housing cycles, while its capital-light model and high free cash flow conversion support steady reinvestment and capital returns.”
—Zachary Weiss

Moreover, long-term secular tailwinds, including an aging U.S. housing stock, rising wildfire and seismic risks, and tightening energy and safety codes, continue to support growth. Simpson is also benefiting from growing interest in factory-built construction, where connectors are specified earlier and pricing is less competitive. These dynamics, paired with a strong owner-operator culture rooted in Barclay Simpson’s “Nine Principles of Doing Business” create the type of durable compounder we seek for the Fund.

Multiple catalysts should benefit Simpson regardless of where interest rates and the housing cycle wind up in the months to come. First, revisions to the 2024 International Building Code are tightening requirements, with some states set to adopt these new rules in 2026. That’s pushing builders to use stronger hardware, which should boost demand in the years ahead. Second, the ETANCO acquisition has begun delivering the margin improvement management forecasted as duplicate plants close and procurement consolidates. Third, the rise of engineered wood construction is reaching a commercialization inflection. Simpson has launched a suite of concealed connectors for cross-laminated timber and is securing high-profile specifications on both sides of the Atlantic.

These catalysts are layered on top of powerful competitive advantages. Simpson’s products are specified into architectural and engineering plans before construction begins. Changing them mid-project can introduce liability, delays, or failed inspections, creating switching costs that support enduring pricing power. It also has a leg up on innovation and continues to expand its market leadership with new products. For example, Simpson’s in-house seismic testing lab presents a high barrier for competitors to replicate. Simpson is also expanding its connected software solutions, helping engineers, architects, and contractors more easily design and specify, deepening customer integration.

We think the strength of the business model is evident in the numbers. Gross margin has remained near 46%, with operating margin reaching 22.2% last quarter despite lingering volatility in input costs. Free cash flow routinely matches or exceeds net income thanks to low CapEx and tight working-capital discipline. The balance sheet is healthy, with net leverage below 1x EBITDA (earnings before interest, taxes, depreciation, & amortization), which offers enviable flexibility for continued buybacks, dividends, or strategic tuck-ins.

Simpson Manufacturing exemplifies the attributes that we seek in our Premier holdings: a mission-critical leader in a fragmented, underpenetrated market with strong cash generation, embedded competitive advantages, and a long runway of secular growth. Building code-driven demand, ETANCO margin uplift, and rising mass-timber adoption are just a few of the many forces that should enable Simpson to compound earnings even if macro housing trends remain choppy.

Important Disclosure Information

Average Annual Total Returns as of 6/30/2025 (%)

  QTD1 1YR 3YR 5YR 10YR SINCE
INCEPT.
DATE ANNUAL
OPERATING EXPENSES
NET               GROSS
Premier 6.70 1.34 9.49 9.67 8.36 10.80 12/31/91  1.19  1.19
Russell 2000
8.50 7.68 10.00 10.04 7.12 9.04 N/A  N/A  N/A
1 Not annualized.

All performance information reflects past performance, is presented on a total return basis, reflects the reinvestment of distributions, and does not reflect the deduction of taxes that a shareholder would pay on fund distributions or the redemption of fund shares. Past performance is no guarantee of future results. Investment return and principal value of an investment will fluctuate, so that shares may be worth more or less than their original cost when redeemed. Current month-end performance may be higher or lower than performance quoted and may be obtained at www.royceinvest.com. Operating expenses reflect the Fund's total annual operating expenses for the Investment Class as of the Fund's most current prospectus and include management fees and other expenses.

Mr. Weiss’s thoughts and opinions concerning the stock market are solely his own and, of course, there can be no assurance with regard to future market movements. No assurance can be given that the past performance trends as outlined above will continue in the future. The performance data and trends outlined in this presentation are presented for illustrative purposes only. Past performance is no guarantee of future results. Historical market trends are not necessarily indicative of future market movements.

Percentage of Fund Holdings As of 6/30/25 (%)

  Premier

Simpson Manufacturing

1.5

Company examples are for illustrative purposes only. This does not constitute a recommendation to buy or sell any stock. There can be no assurance that the securities mentioned in this piece will be included in any Fund’s portfolio in the future.

Return on Invested Capital is calculated by dividing a company’s past 12 months of operating income (earnings before interest and taxes) by its average invested capital (total equity, less cash and cash equivalents, plus total debt, minority interest, and preferred stock).

Sector weightings are determined using the Global Industry Classification Standard ("GICS"). GICS was developed by, and is the exclusive property of, Standard & Poor's Financial Services LLC ("S&P") and MSCI Inc. ("MSCI"). GICS is the trademark of S&P and MSCI. "Global Industry Classification Standard (GICS)" and "GICS Direct" are service marks of S&P and MSCI.

Frank Russell Company (“Russell”) is the source and owner of the trademarks, service marks and copyrights related to the Russell Indexes. Russell® is a trademark of Frank Russell Company. Neither Russell nor its licensors accept any liability for any errors or omissions in the Russell Indexes and/or Russell ratings or underlying data and no party may rely on any Russell Indexes and/or Russell ratings and/or underlying data contained in this communication. No further distribution of Russell Data is permitted without Russell’s express written consent. Russell does not promote, sponsor or endorse the content of this communication. The Russell 2000 is an unmanaged, capitalization-weighted index of domestic small-cap stocks. It measures the performance of the 2,000 smallest publicly traded U.S. companies in the Russell 3000 index. The performance of an index does not represent exactly any particular investment, as you cannot invest directly in an index.

This material is not authorized for distribution unless preceded or accompanied by a current prospectus. Please read the prospectus carefully before investing or sending money. The Fund invests primarily in small-cap stocks, which may involve considerably more risk than investing in larger-cap stocks. The Fund also generally invests a significant portion of its assets in a limited number of stocks, which may involve considerably more risk than a more broadly diversified portfolio because a decline in the value of any one of these stocks would cause the Fund's overall value to decline to a greater degree. (Please see "Primary Risks for Fund Investors" in the prospectus.) The Fund may invest up to 25% of its net assets (measured at the time of investment) in securities of companies headquartered in foreign countries, which may involve political, economic, currency, and other risks not encountered in U.S. investments. (Please see "Investing in Frank Russell Company (“Russell”) is the source and owner of the trademarks, service marks and copyrights related to the Russell Indexes. Russell® is a trademark of Frank Russell Company. Neither Russell nor its licensors accept any liability for any errors or omissions in the Russell Indexes and/or Russell ratings or underlying data and no party may rely on any Russell Indexes and/or Russell ratings and/or underlying data contained in this communication. No further distribution of Russell Data is permitted without Russell’s express written consent. Russell does not promote, sponsor or endorse the content of this communication. The Russell 2000 is an unmanaged, capitalization-weighted index of domestic small-cap stocks. It measures the performance of the 2,000 smallest publicly traded U.S. companies in the Russell 3000 index. The performance of an index does not represent exactly any particular investment, as you cannot invest directly in an index.

Share:

Subscribe:

Sign Up

Follow: