Go Pro

Fastenal (FAST) Competitors

Fastenal logo
$49.78 -1.35 (-2.64%)
As of 08/28/2026 04:00 PM Eastern

FAST vs. BLDR, GGG, GWW, HD, and ITW

Should you buy Fastenal stock or one of its competitors? Fastenal's main competitors and comparable companies include Builders FirstSource (BLDR), Graco (GGG), W.W. Grainger (GWW), Home Depot (HD), and Illinois Tool Works (ITW). Companies are selected based on similarities in market, industry, and size.

How does Fastenal compare to Builders FirstSource?

Fastenal (NASDAQ:FAST) and Builders FirstSource (NYSE:BLDR) are both industrials companies, but which is the better stock? We will compare the two businesses based on the strength of their earnings, analyst recommendations, media sentiment, dividends, valuation, risk, profitability and institutional ownership.

81.4% of Fastenal shares are held by institutional investors. Comparatively, 95.5% of Builders FirstSource shares are held by institutional investors. 0.3% of Fastenal shares are held by insiders. Comparatively, 2.7% of Builders FirstSource shares are held by insiders. Strong institutional ownership is an indication that large money managers, endowments and hedge funds believe a stock will outperform the market over the long term.

Fastenal currently has a consensus price target of $49.17, indicating a potential downside of 1.23%. Builders FirstSource has a consensus price target of $90.35, indicating a potential upside of 33.38%. Given Builders FirstSource's higher probable upside, analysts clearly believe Builders FirstSource is more favorable than Fastenal.

Company Sell Ratings Hold Ratings Buy Ratings Strong Buy Ratings Rating Score
Fastenal
2 Sell rating(s)
5 Hold rating(s)
5 Buy rating(s)
0 Strong Buy rating(s)
2.25
Builders FirstSource
3 Sell rating(s)
13 Hold rating(s)
9 Buy rating(s)
0 Strong Buy rating(s)
2.24

Fastenal has a net margin of 15.45% compared to Builders FirstSource's net margin of 0.71%. Fastenal's return on equity of 34.03% beat Builders FirstSource's return on equity.

Company Net Margins Return on Equity Return on Assets
Fastenal15.45% 34.03% 26.16%
Builders FirstSource 0.71%11.73%4.32%

Fastenal has a beta of 0.72, meaning that its stock price is 28% less volatile than the broader market. Comparatively, Builders FirstSource has a beta of 1.44, meaning that its stock price is 44% more volatile than the broader market.

In the previous week, Fastenal had 19 more articles in the media than Builders FirstSource. MarketBeat recorded 37 mentions for Fastenal and 18 mentions for Builders FirstSource. Fastenal's average media sentiment score of 1.64 beat Builders FirstSource's score of 1.58 indicating that Fastenal is being referred to more favorably in the media.

Company Very Positive Positive Neutral Negative Very Negative Overall Sentiment
Fastenal
34 Very Positive mention(s)
1 Positive mention(s)
1 Neutral mention(s)
0 Negative mention(s)
0 Very Negative mention(s)
Very Positive
Builders FirstSource
17 Very Positive mention(s)
0 Positive mention(s)
1 Neutral mention(s)
0 Negative mention(s)
0 Very Negative mention(s)
Very Positive

Fastenal has higher earnings, but lower revenue than Builders FirstSource. Fastenal is trading at a lower price-to-earnings ratio than Builders FirstSource, indicating that it is currently the more affordable of the two stocks.

CompanyGross RevenuePrice/Sales RatioNet IncomeEarnings Per SharePrice/Earnings Ratio
Fastenal$8.20B6.97$1.26B$1.1842.19
Builders FirstSource$15.19B0.48$435.20M$0.9174.44

Summary

Fastenal beats Builders FirstSource on 9 of the 16 factors compared between the two stocks.

How does Fastenal compare to Graco?

Graco (NYSE:GGG) and Fastenal (NASDAQ:FAST) are both large-cap industrials companies, but which is the superior investment? We will contrast the two businesses based on the strength of their profitability, media sentiment, risk, institutional ownership, valuation, dividends, earnings and analyst recommendations.

Graco has a beta of 0.92, meaning that its stock price is 8% less volatile than the broader market. Comparatively, Fastenal has a beta of 0.72, meaning that its stock price is 28% less volatile than the broader market.

In the previous week, Fastenal had 14 more articles in the media than Graco. MarketBeat recorded 37 mentions for Fastenal and 23 mentions for Graco. Fastenal's average media sentiment score of 1.64 beat Graco's score of 1.09 indicating that Fastenal is being referred to more favorably in the news media.

Company Very Positive Positive Neutral Negative Very Negative Overall Sentiment
Graco
14 Very Positive mention(s)
0 Positive mention(s)
2 Neutral mention(s)
0 Negative mention(s)
0 Very Negative mention(s)
Positive
Fastenal
34 Very Positive mention(s)
1 Positive mention(s)
1 Neutral mention(s)
0 Negative mention(s)
0 Very Negative mention(s)
Very Positive

93.9% of Graco shares are held by institutional investors. Comparatively, 81.4% of Fastenal shares are held by institutional investors. 2.2% of Graco shares are held by insiders. Comparatively, 0.3% of Fastenal shares are held by insiders. Strong institutional ownership is an indication that large money managers, hedge funds and endowments believe a company is poised for long-term growth.

Graco currently has a consensus price target of $95.00, suggesting a potential upside of 20.04%. Fastenal has a consensus price target of $49.17, suggesting a potential downside of 1.23%. Given Graco's stronger consensus rating and higher probable upside, analysts plainly believe Graco is more favorable than Fastenal.

Company Sell Ratings Hold Ratings Buy Ratings Strong Buy Ratings Rating Score
Graco
0 Sell rating(s)
5 Hold rating(s)
2 Buy rating(s)
0 Strong Buy rating(s)
2.29
Fastenal
2 Sell rating(s)
5 Hold rating(s)
5 Buy rating(s)
0 Strong Buy rating(s)
2.25

Graco pays an annual dividend of $1.18 per share and has a dividend yield of 1.5%. Fastenal pays an annual dividend of $1.04 per share and has a dividend yield of 2.1%. Graco pays out 37.1% of its earnings in the form of a dividend. Fastenal pays out 88.1% of its earnings in the form of a dividend, suggesting it may not have sufficient earnings to cover its dividend payment in the future. Graco has raised its dividend for 29 consecutive years and Fastenal has raised its dividend for 26 consecutive years.

Fastenal has higher revenue and earnings than Graco. Graco is trading at a lower price-to-earnings ratio than Fastenal, indicating that it is currently the more affordable of the two stocks.

CompanyGross RevenuePrice/Sales RatioNet IncomeEarnings Per SharePrice/Earnings Ratio
Graco$2.24B5.73$521.84M$3.1824.89
Fastenal$8.20B6.97$1.26B$1.1842.19

Graco has a net margin of 23.53% compared to Fastenal's net margin of 15.45%. Fastenal's return on equity of 34.03% beat Graco's return on equity.

Company Net Margins Return on Equity Return on Assets
Graco23.53% 19.54% 15.86%
Fastenal 15.45%34.03%26.16%

Summary

Fastenal beats Graco on 10 of the 19 factors compared between the two stocks.

How does Fastenal compare to W.W. Grainger?

Fastenal (NASDAQ:FAST) and W.W. Grainger (NYSE:GWW) are both large-cap industrials companies, but which is the better business? We will compare the two companies based on the strength of their valuation, risk, earnings, dividends, institutional ownership, media sentiment, profitability and analyst recommendations.

Fastenal pays an annual dividend of $1.04 per share and has a dividend yield of 2.1%. W.W. Grainger pays an annual dividend of $9.96 per share and has a dividend yield of 0.8%. Fastenal pays out 88.1% of its earnings in the form of a dividend, suggesting it may not have sufficient earnings to cover its dividend payment in the future. W.W. Grainger pays out 25.4% of its earnings in the form of a dividend. Fastenal has increased its dividend for 26 consecutive years and W.W. Grainger has increased its dividend for 55 consecutive years.

Fastenal currently has a consensus price target of $49.17, suggesting a potential downside of 1.23%. W.W. Grainger has a consensus price target of $1,286.63, suggesting a potential downside of 1.46%. Given Fastenal's stronger consensus rating and higher possible upside, research analysts plainly believe Fastenal is more favorable than W.W. Grainger.

Company Sell Ratings Hold Ratings Buy Ratings Strong Buy Ratings Rating Score
Fastenal
2 Sell rating(s)
5 Hold rating(s)
5 Buy rating(s)
0 Strong Buy rating(s)
2.25
W.W. Grainger
1 Sell rating(s)
7 Hold rating(s)
2 Buy rating(s)
0 Strong Buy rating(s)
2.10

In the previous week, W.W. Grainger had 8 more articles in the media than Fastenal. MarketBeat recorded 45 mentions for W.W. Grainger and 37 mentions for Fastenal. Fastenal's average media sentiment score of 1.64 beat W.W. Grainger's score of 1.30 indicating that Fastenal is being referred to more favorably in the media.

Company Very Positive Positive Neutral Negative Very Negative Overall Sentiment
Fastenal
34 Very Positive mention(s)
1 Positive mention(s)
1 Neutral mention(s)
0 Negative mention(s)
0 Very Negative mention(s)
Very Positive
W.W. Grainger
28 Very Positive mention(s)
3 Positive mention(s)
5 Neutral mention(s)
0 Negative mention(s)
0 Very Negative mention(s)
Positive

Fastenal has a beta of 0.72, indicating that its share price is 28% less volatile than the broader market. Comparatively, W.W. Grainger has a beta of 1.04, indicating that its share price is 4% more volatile than the broader market.

W.W. Grainger has higher revenue and earnings than Fastenal. W.W. Grainger is trading at a lower price-to-earnings ratio than Fastenal, indicating that it is currently the more affordable of the two stocks.

CompanyGross RevenuePrice/Sales RatioNet IncomeEarnings Per SharePrice/Earnings Ratio
Fastenal$8.20B6.97$1.26B$1.1842.19
W.W. Grainger$17.94B3.43$1.71B$39.2233.29

Fastenal has a net margin of 15.45% compared to W.W. Grainger's net margin of 9.92%. W.W. Grainger's return on equity of 48.73% beat Fastenal's return on equity.

Company Net Margins Return on Equity Return on Assets
Fastenal15.45% 34.03% 26.16%
W.W. Grainger 9.92%48.73%22.40%

81.4% of Fastenal shares are held by institutional investors. Comparatively, 80.7% of W.W. Grainger shares are held by institutional investors. 0.3% of Fastenal shares are held by insiders. Comparatively, 6.3% of W.W. Grainger shares are held by insiders. Strong institutional ownership is an indication that hedge funds, endowments and large money managers believe a company will outperform the market over the long term.

Summary

Fastenal beats W.W. Grainger on 10 of the 19 factors compared between the two stocks.

How does Fastenal compare to Home Depot?

Home Depot (NYSE:HD) and Fastenal (NASDAQ:FAST) are related large-cap companies, but which is the better business? We will contrast the two companies based on the strength of their media sentiment, risk, profitability, earnings, dividends, analyst recommendations, valuation and institutional ownership.

Fastenal has a net margin of 15.45% compared to Home Depot's net margin of 8.41%. Home Depot's return on equity of 106.42% beat Fastenal's return on equity.

Company Net Margins Return on Equity Return on Assets
Home Depot8.41% 106.42% 13.76%
Fastenal 15.45%34.03%26.16%

70.9% of Home Depot shares are owned by institutional investors. Comparatively, 81.4% of Fastenal shares are owned by institutional investors. 0.1% of Home Depot shares are owned by insiders. Comparatively, 0.3% of Fastenal shares are owned by insiders. Strong institutional ownership is an indication that hedge funds, large money managers and endowments believe a company is poised for long-term growth.

Home Depot currently has a consensus price target of $375.54, indicating a potential upside of 13.87%. Fastenal has a consensus price target of $49.17, indicating a potential downside of 1.23%. Given Home Depot's stronger consensus rating and higher probable upside, equities research analysts clearly believe Home Depot is more favorable than Fastenal.

Company Sell Ratings Hold Ratings Buy Ratings Strong Buy Ratings Rating Score
Home Depot
1 Sell rating(s)
13 Hold rating(s)
18 Buy rating(s)
0 Strong Buy rating(s)
2.53
Fastenal
2 Sell rating(s)
5 Hold rating(s)
5 Buy rating(s)
0 Strong Buy rating(s)
2.25

Home Depot pays an annual dividend of $9.32 per share and has a dividend yield of 2.8%. Fastenal pays an annual dividend of $1.04 per share and has a dividend yield of 2.1%. Home Depot pays out 65.2% of its earnings in the form of a dividend. Fastenal pays out 88.1% of its earnings in the form of a dividend, suggesting it may not have sufficient earnings to cover its dividend payment in the future. Home Depot has increased its dividend for 16 consecutive years and Fastenal has increased its dividend for 26 consecutive years. Home Depot is clearly the better dividend stock, given its higher yield and lower payout ratio.

In the previous week, Home Depot had 123 more articles in the media than Fastenal. MarketBeat recorded 160 mentions for Home Depot and 37 mentions for Fastenal. Fastenal's average media sentiment score of 1.64 beat Home Depot's score of 1.57 indicating that Fastenal is being referred to more favorably in the news media.

Company Very Positive Positive Neutral Negative Very Negative Overall Sentiment
Home Depot
141 Very Positive mention(s)
6 Positive mention(s)
8 Neutral mention(s)
2 Negative mention(s)
0 Very Negative mention(s)
Very Positive
Fastenal
34 Very Positive mention(s)
1 Positive mention(s)
1 Neutral mention(s)
0 Negative mention(s)
0 Very Negative mention(s)
Very Positive

Home Depot has higher revenue and earnings than Fastenal. Home Depot is trading at a lower price-to-earnings ratio than Fastenal, indicating that it is currently the more affordable of the two stocks.

CompanyGross RevenuePrice/Sales RatioNet IncomeEarnings Per SharePrice/Earnings Ratio
Home Depot$164.68B2.00$14.16B$14.2923.08
Fastenal$8.20B6.97$1.26B$1.1842.19

Home Depot has a beta of 0.95, meaning that its stock price is 5% less volatile than the broader market. Comparatively, Fastenal has a beta of 0.72, meaning that its stock price is 28% less volatile than the broader market.

Summary

Home Depot beats Fastenal on 11 of the 19 factors compared between the two stocks.

How does Fastenal compare to Illinois Tool Works?

Illinois Tool Works (NYSE:ITW) and Fastenal (NASDAQ:FAST) are both large-cap industrials companies, but which is the better business? We will compare the two businesses based on the strength of their profitability, earnings, risk, valuation, institutional ownership, media sentiment, dividends and analyst recommendations.

79.8% of Illinois Tool Works shares are owned by institutional investors. Comparatively, 81.4% of Fastenal shares are owned by institutional investors. 0.8% of Illinois Tool Works shares are owned by insiders. Comparatively, 0.3% of Fastenal shares are owned by insiders. Strong institutional ownership is an indication that large money managers, hedge funds and endowments believe a company will outperform the market over the long term.

Illinois Tool Works has a net margin of 19.39% compared to Fastenal's net margin of 15.45%. Illinois Tool Works' return on equity of 101.72% beat Fastenal's return on equity.

Company Net Margins Return on Equity Return on Assets
Illinois Tool Works19.39% 101.72% 19.64%
Fastenal 15.45%34.03%26.16%

Illinois Tool Works has higher revenue and earnings than Fastenal. Illinois Tool Works is trading at a lower price-to-earnings ratio than Fastenal, indicating that it is currently the more affordable of the two stocks.

CompanyGross RevenuePrice/Sales RatioNet IncomeEarnings Per SharePrice/Earnings Ratio
Illinois Tool Works$16.04B4.97$3.07B$11.0325.40
Fastenal$8.20B6.97$1.26B$1.1842.19

Illinois Tool Works has a beta of 0.99, suggesting that its share price is 1% less volatile than the broader market. Comparatively, Fastenal has a beta of 0.72, suggesting that its share price is 28% less volatile than the broader market.

In the previous week, Illinois Tool Works had 6 more articles in the media than Fastenal. MarketBeat recorded 43 mentions for Illinois Tool Works and 37 mentions for Fastenal. Fastenal's average media sentiment score of 1.64 beat Illinois Tool Works' score of 1.62 indicating that Fastenal is being referred to more favorably in the news media.

Company Very Positive Positive Neutral Negative Very Negative Overall Sentiment
Illinois Tool Works
42 Very Positive mention(s)
0 Positive mention(s)
1 Neutral mention(s)
0 Negative mention(s)
0 Very Negative mention(s)
Very Positive
Fastenal
34 Very Positive mention(s)
1 Positive mention(s)
1 Neutral mention(s)
0 Negative mention(s)
0 Very Negative mention(s)
Very Positive

Illinois Tool Works pays an annual dividend of $6.44 per share and has a dividend yield of 2.3%. Fastenal pays an annual dividend of $1.04 per share and has a dividend yield of 2.1%. Illinois Tool Works pays out 58.4% of its earnings in the form of a dividend. Fastenal pays out 88.1% of its earnings in the form of a dividend, suggesting it may not have sufficient earnings to cover its dividend payment in the future. Illinois Tool Works has raised its dividend for 55 consecutive years and Fastenal has raised its dividend for 26 consecutive years. Illinois Tool Works is clearly the better dividend stock, given its higher yield and longer track record of dividend growth.

Illinois Tool Works presently has a consensus price target of $281.25, indicating a potential upside of 0.38%. Fastenal has a consensus price target of $49.17, indicating a potential downside of 1.23%. Given Illinois Tool Works' higher probable upside, equities analysts plainly believe Illinois Tool Works is more favorable than Fastenal.

Company Sell Ratings Hold Ratings Buy Ratings Strong Buy Ratings Rating Score
Illinois Tool Works
5 Sell rating(s)
6 Hold rating(s)
2 Buy rating(s)
0 Strong Buy rating(s)
1.77
Fastenal
2 Sell rating(s)
5 Hold rating(s)
5 Buy rating(s)
0 Strong Buy rating(s)
2.25

Summary

Illinois Tool Works beats Fastenal on 12 of the 19 factors compared between the two stocks.

Get Fastenal News Delivered to You Automatically

Sign up to receive the latest news and ratings for FAST and its competitors with MarketBeat's FREE daily newsletter.

Subscribe Now
SMS is currently available in Australia, Belgium, Canada, France, Germany, Ireland, Italy, New Zealand, the Netherlands, Singapore, South Africa, Spain, Switzerland, the United Kingdom, and the United States. By entering your phone number and clicking the sign-up button, you agree to receive periodic text messages from MarketBeat at the phone number you submitted, including texts that may be sent using an automatic telephone dialing system. Message and data rates may apply. Message frequency will vary. Messages will consist of stock alerts, news stories, and partner advertisements/offers. Consent is not a condition of the purchase of any goods or services. Text HELP for help/customer support. Unsubscribe at any time by replying "STOP" to any text message that you receive from MarketBeat or by visiting our mailing preferences page. Read our full terms of service and privacy policy.

New MarketBeat Followers Over Time

This chart shows the number of new MarketBeat users adding FAST and its top 5 competitors to their watchlist. Each company is represented with a line over a 90 day period.
Skip Chart

Media Sentiment Over Time

This chart shows the average media sentiment of NASDAQ and its competitors over the past 90 days as caculated by MarketBeat. The averaged score is equivalent to the following: Very Negative Sentiment <= -1.5, Negative Sentiment > -1.5 and <= -0.5, Neutral Sentiment > -0.5 and < 0.5, Positive Sentiment >= 0.5 and < 1.5, and Very Positive Sentiment >= 1.5.
Skip Chart

FAST vs. The Competition

MetricFastenalTrading Companies & Distributors IndustryIndustrials SectorNASDAQ Exchange
Market Cap$57.12B$9.19B$10.53B$12.91B
Dividend Yield2.09%3.40%97.24%11.28%
P/E Ratio42.1927.1626.3725.45
Price / Sales6.9723.27372.4286.98
Price / Cash39.7648.8324.3853.00
Price / Book14.023.194.646.14
Net Income$1.26B$371.61M$611.08M$348.86M
7 Day Performance-2.89%-1.31%-0.86%-0.80%
1 Month Performance6.69%1.91%1.92%4.13%
1 Year Performance0.24%6.69%10.97%15.17%

Fastenal Competitors List

CompanyMarketRankShare PriceAnalysts' Price Target1Y Price PerformanceMarket CapRevenueP/E RatioEmployee CountIndicator(s)
FAST
Fastenal
3.9648 of 5 stars
$49.78
-2.6%
$49.17
-1.2%
+0.2%$57.12B$8.20B42.1924,489
BLDR
Builders FirstSource
4.4302 of 5 stars
$70.17
-3.2%
$90.35
+28.8%
-51.2%$7.80B$15.19B77.1128,000
GGG
Graco
4.6814 of 5 stars
$81.54
-0.5%
$95.00
+16.5%
-7.2%$13.27B$2.24B25.644,400
GWW
W.W. Grainger
4.08 of 5 stars
$1,319.00
-0.3%
$1,274.13
-3.4%
+28.8%$62.30B$17.94B33.6325,000
HD
Home Depot
4.9275 of 5 stars
$338.44
-0.1%
$373.89
+10.5%
-19.0%$337.88B$164.68B24.04472,400

Related Companies and Tools


This page (NASDAQ:FAST) was last updated on 8/30/2026 by MarketBeat.com Staff.
From Our Partners