With analysts, Valspar applies an extra coat of Ace

Ace Hardware was mentioned 28 times during Valspar Corp.’s latest earnings call. Longtime partner Lowe’s was mentioned only 22 times.

Maybe that’s a hidden indicator. Probably not. But Valspar is certainly looking for its summer relationship with the Oak Brook, Ill.- based co-op to blossom into something beautiful, and profitable.

“We continue to expect to have over 3,000 stores redesigned and reset before the summer painting season,” said Valspar CEO Gary Hendrickson. That’s up from about 1,500 currently.

Valspar since last year has been making all of Ace’s private-label paints — including Clark & Kensington. And its private-label and branded paint sales at Ace stores were a “key driver” of the company’s 9% sales gain in the first quarter of 2014, the company said.

Lowe’s, the world’s second-largest home center, factors heavily in the growth plans, also — especially its Professional Paint program. “This program significantly enhances our ability to serve the large professional paint market,” Hendrickson said.

For those keeping track: the Valspar call’s third-most-oft-mentioned retailer — B&Q, with 11.