W.W. Grainger (GWW) Competitors $980.23 -7.38 (-0.75%) Closing price 09/22/2025 03:59 PM EasternExtended Trading$979.34 -0.89 (-0.09%) As of 09:09 AM Eastern Extended trading is trading that happens on electronic markets outside of regular trading hours. This is a fair market value extended hours price provided by Polygon.io. Learn more. Add Compare Share Share Competitors Stock AnalysisAnalyst ForecastsChartCompetitorsDividendEarningsFinancialsHeadlinesInsider TradesOptions ChainOwnershipSEC FilingsShort InterestSustainabilityTrendsBuy This Stock GWW vs. FAST, AME, GGG, HUBB, ITW, MSM, WSO, URI, WCC, and AITShould you be buying W.W. Grainger stock or one of its competitors? The main competitors of W.W. Grainger include Fastenal (FAST), AMETEK (AME), Graco (GGG), Hubbell (HUBB), Illinois Tool Works (ITW), MSC Industrial Direct (MSM), Watsco (WSO), United Rentals (URI), WESCO International (WCC), and Applied Industrial Technologies (AIT). W.W. Grainger vs. Its Competitors Fastenal AMETEK Graco Hubbell Illinois Tool Works MSC Industrial Direct Watsco United Rentals WESCO International Applied Industrial Technologies Fastenal (NASDAQ:FAST) and W.W. Grainger (NYSE:GWW) are both large-cap trading companies & distributors companies, but which is the better investment? We will contrast the two businesses based on the strength of their earnings, profitability, dividends, risk, valuation, analyst recommendations, media sentiment and institutional ownership. Is FAST or GWW a better dividend stock? Fastenal pays an annual dividend of $0.88 per share and has a dividend yield of 1.9%. W.W. Grainger pays an annual dividend of $9.04 per share and has a dividend yield of 0.9%. Fastenal pays out 84.6% 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 22.9% of its earnings in the form of a dividend. Fastenal has raised its dividend for 26 consecutive years and W.W. Grainger has raised its dividend for 55 consecutive years. Which has better earnings and valuation, FAST or GWW? 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 RatioFastenal$7.55B7.17$1.15B$1.0445.31W.W. Grainger$17.17B2.73$1.91B$39.4124.87 Do analysts prefer FAST or GWW? Fastenal presently has a consensus target price of $46.82, indicating a potential downside of 0.64%. W.W. Grainger has a consensus target price of $1,069.13, indicating a potential upside of 9.07%. Given W.W. Grainger's higher possible upside, analysts clearly believe W.W. Grainger is more favorable than Fastenal.Company Sell Ratings Hold Ratings Buy Ratings Strong Buy Ratings Rating Score Fastenal 1 Sell rating(s) 8 Hold rating(s) 4 Buy rating(s) 1 Strong Buy rating(s) 2.36W.W. Grainger 2 Sell rating(s) 7 Hold rating(s) 2 Buy rating(s) 1 Strong Buy rating(s) 2.17 Does the media prefer FAST or GWW? In the previous week, Fastenal had 42 more articles in the media than W.W. Grainger. MarketBeat recorded 68 mentions for Fastenal and 26 mentions for W.W. Grainger. Fastenal's average media sentiment score of 1.74 beat W.W. Grainger's score of 1.37 indicating that Fastenal is being referred to more favorably in the media. Company Very Positive Positive Neutral Negative Very Negative Overall Sentiment Fastenal 67 Very Positive mention(s) 0 Positive mention(s) 1 Neutral mention(s) 0 Negative mention(s) 0 Very Negative mention(s) Very Positive W.W. Grainger 22 Very Positive mention(s) 0 Positive mention(s) 4 Neutral mention(s) 0 Negative mention(s) 0 Very Negative mention(s) Positive Which has more risk & volatility, FAST or GWW? Fastenal has a beta of 0.97, meaning that its share price is 3% less volatile than the S&P 500. Comparatively, W.W. Grainger has a beta of 1.18, meaning that its share price is 18% more volatile than the S&P 500. Do institutionals & insiders have more ownership in FAST or GWW? 81.4% of Fastenal shares are held by institutional investors. Comparatively, 80.7% of W.W. Grainger shares are held by institutional investors. 0.4% of Fastenal shares are held by insiders. Comparatively, 6.1% of W.W. Grainger 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. Is FAST or GWW more profitable? Fastenal has a net margin of 15.30% compared to W.W. Grainger's net margin of 10.99%. W.W. Grainger's return on equity of 49.63% beat Fastenal's return on equity.Company Net Margins Return on Equity Return on Assets Fastenal15.30% 32.33% 24.62% W.W. Grainger 10.99%49.63%21.63% SummaryFastenal beats W.W. Grainger on 10 of the 19 factors compared between the two stocks. Get W.W. Grainger News Delivered to You Automatically Sign up to receive the latest news and ratings for GWW and its competitors with MarketBeat's FREE daily newsletter. Subscribe Now View SMS TermsBy 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 TimeWhat are MarkeBeat Followers?This chart shows the number of new MarketBeat users adding GWW and its top 5 competitors to their watchlist. Each company is represented with a line over a 90 day period. Skip ChartMedia Sentiment Over TimeWhat is Media Sentiment?This chart shows the average media sentiment of NYSE 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 GWW vs. The Competition Export to ExcelMetricW.W. GraingerIndustrial Services IndustryIndustrials SectorNYSE ExchangeMarket Cap$47.24B$17.92B$7.80B$21.65BDividend Yield0.92%2.24%4.58%3.50%P/E Ratio24.8723.15307.7030.24Price / Sales2.739.95239.5658.73Price / Cash22.2914.0427.9818.30Price / Book12.894.704.784.66Net Income$1.91B$647.08M$799.16M$1.00B7 Day Performance-1.36%6.93%1.25%1.11%1 Month Performance-3.96%8.51%2.43%2.95%1 Year Performance-5.91%26.35%27.17%15.18% W.W. Grainger Competitors List Export to ExcelCompanyMarketRankShare PriceAnalysts' Price Target1Y Price PerformanceMarket CapRevenueP/E RatioEmployee CountIndicator(s)GWWW.W. Grainger4.5469 of 5 stars$980.23-0.7%$1,069.13+9.1%-5.0%$47.24B$17.17B24.8726,000Positive NewsFASTFastenal4.2779 of 5 stars$47.76+0.7%$46.82-2.0%+33.2%$54.81B$7.55B45.9223,702Positive NewsAMEAMETEK4.5251 of 5 stars$189.60-0.2%$205.00+8.1%+10.2%$43.79B$6.94B30.5321,500Positive NewsGGGGraco4.1211 of 5 stars$84.77+0.4%$94.50+11.5%-0.1%$14.05B$2.17B30.064,300Positive NewsHUBBHubbell3.4001 of 5 stars$438.11+0.2%$472.63+7.9%+3.0%$23.28B$5.63B28.4517,700ITWIllinois Tool Works4.2522 of 5 stars$263.91+0.2%$260.67-1.2%+2.7%$76.93B$15.90B23.1344,000Positive NewsMSMMSC Industrial Direct3.7782 of 5 stars$91.82+0.5%$90.33-1.6%+8.4%$5.11B$3.74B25.947,423Positive NewsWSOWatsco4.4814 of 5 stars$386.38+1.2%$484.17+25.3%-20.0%$15.67B$7.51B29.637,295Positive NewsURIUnited Rentals4.3257 of 5 stars$947.64+1.0%$842.86-11.1%+20.4%$60.97B$15.35B24.5127,900Positive NewsAnalyst ForecastWCCWESCO International4.3904 of 5 stars$214.89+0.1%$232.67+8.3%+25.9%$10.46B$21.82B16.8320,000Positive NewsAITApplied Industrial Technologies4.766 of 5 stars$262.52-0.3%$285.00+8.6%+21.3%$9.91B$4.56B25.946,800Positive News Related Companies and Tools Related Companies Fastenal Alternatives AMETEK Alternatives Graco Alternatives Hubbell Alternatives Illinois Tool Works Alternatives MSC Industrial Direct Alternatives Watsco Alternatives United Rentals Alternatives WESCO International Alternatives Applied Industrial Technologies Alternatives Top 10 Stock Comparisons Semiconductor Stocks Artificial Intelligence Stocks Growth Stocks Magnificent Seven Stocks Pharmaceutical Stocks Ecommerce Stocks Bitcoin Stocks Meme Stocks Cryptocurrency Stocks Cybersecurity Stocks This page (NYSE:GWW) was last updated on 9/23/2025 by MarketBeat.com Staff From Our PartnersTrump’s national nightmare is herePorter Stansberry and Jeff Brown say a new U.S. national emergency is already underway — and it could trigger ...Porter & Company | SponsoredTrump’s Plan May Undo 1933’s Biggest Financial InjusticeTrump's Reset Can Give Birth To America's Greatest Era Yet A 90-Year cycle may end soon, creating real weal...American Hartford Gold | SponsoredHe Called Nvidia at $1.10. 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