MSC Industrial Direct (MSM) Competitors

MSC Industrial Direct logo
$119.17 +2.62 (+2.25%)
Closing price 06/25/2026 03:59 PM Eastern
Extended Trading
$120.13 +0.96 (+0.81%)
As of 06/25/2026 06:52 PM 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 Massive. Learn more.

MSM vs. FAST, LECO, AIT, DCI, and DOV

Should you buy MSC Industrial Direct stock or one of its competitors? MarketBeat compares MSC Industrial Direct with other companies and stocks that may be similar based on industry, sector, market capitalization, business model, investor interest, or shared news coverage. Companies and stocks commonly compared with MSC Industrial Direct include Fastenal (FAST), Lincoln Electric (LECO), Applied Industrial Technologies (AIT), Donaldson (DCI), and Dover (DOV).

How does MSC Industrial Direct compare to Fastenal?

Fastenal (NASDAQ:FAST) and MSC Industrial Direct (NYSE:MSM) are both trading companies & distributors companies, but which is the superior business? We will contrast the two companies based on the strength of their analyst recommendations, risk, earnings, dividends, media sentiment, institutional ownership, valuation and profitability.

Fastenal presently has a consensus target price of $49.57, indicating a potential upside of 5.65%. MSC Industrial Direct has a consensus target price of $101.00, indicating a potential downside of 15.25%. Given Fastenal's stronger consensus rating and higher possible upside, equities analysts clearly believe Fastenal is more favorable than MSC Industrial Direct.

Company Sell Ratings Hold Ratings Buy Ratings Strong Buy Ratings Rating Score
Fastenal
2 Sell rating(s)
7 Hold rating(s)
5 Buy rating(s)
0 Strong Buy rating(s)
2.21
MSC Industrial Direct
0 Sell rating(s)
8 Hold rating(s)
2 Buy rating(s)
0 Strong Buy rating(s)
2.20

Fastenal has a beta of 0.73, suggesting that its share price is 27% less volatile than the broader market. Comparatively, MSC Industrial Direct has a beta of 0.84, suggesting that its share price is 16% less volatile than the broader market.

81.4% of Fastenal shares are owned by institutional investors. Comparatively, 79.3% of MSC Industrial Direct shares are owned by institutional investors. 0.3% of Fastenal shares are owned by company insiders. Comparatively, 19.0% of MSC Industrial Direct shares are owned by company insiders. Strong institutional ownership is an indication that large money managers, endowments and hedge funds believe a company will outperform the market over the long term.

Fastenal pays an annual dividend of $0.96 per share and has a dividend yield of 2.0%. MSC Industrial Direct pays an annual dividend of $3.48 per share and has a dividend yield of 2.9%. Fastenal pays out 84.2% of its earnings in the form of a dividend, suggesting it may not have sufficient earnings to cover its dividend payment in the future. MSC Industrial Direct pays out 93.5% of its earnings in the form of a dividend, suggesting it may not have sufficient earnings to cover its dividend payment in the future. Fastenal has raised its dividend for 26 consecutive years and MSC Industrial Direct has raised its dividend for 3 consecutive years.

In the previous week, Fastenal had 6 more articles in the media than MSC Industrial Direct. MarketBeat recorded 8 mentions for Fastenal and 2 mentions for MSC Industrial Direct. MSC Industrial Direct's average media sentiment score of 0.40 beat Fastenal's score of 0.13 indicating that MSC Industrial Direct is being referred to more favorably in the news media.

Company Very Positive Positive Neutral Negative Very Negative Overall Sentiment
Fastenal
0 Very Positive mention(s)
2 Positive mention(s)
5 Neutral mention(s)
0 Negative mention(s)
0 Very Negative mention(s)
Neutral
MSC Industrial Direct
0 Very Positive mention(s)
0 Positive mention(s)
2 Neutral mention(s)
0 Negative mention(s)
0 Very Negative mention(s)
Neutral

Fastenal has a net margin of 15.39% compared to MSC Industrial Direct's net margin of 5.42%. Fastenal's return on equity of 33.25% beat MSC Industrial Direct's return on equity.

Company Net Margins Return on Equity Return on Assets
Fastenal15.39% 33.25% 25.49%
MSC Industrial Direct 5.42%16.06%9.01%

Fastenal has higher revenue and earnings than MSC Industrial Direct. MSC Industrial Direct 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$8.20B6.57$1.26B$1.1441.16
MSC Industrial Direct$3.77B1.76$199.33M$3.7232.03

Summary

Fastenal beats MSC Industrial Direct on 14 of the 19 factors compared between the two stocks.

How does MSC Industrial Direct compare to Lincoln Electric?

Lincoln Electric (NASDAQ:LECO) and MSC Industrial Direct (NYSE:MSM) are both industrials companies, but which is the better business? We will compare the two businesses based on the strength of their dividends, media sentiment, earnings, profitability, valuation, analyst recommendations, institutional ownership and risk.

Lincoln Electric has a beta of 1.21, indicating that its stock price is 21% more volatile than the broader market. Comparatively, MSC Industrial Direct has a beta of 0.84, indicating that its stock price is 16% less volatile than the broader market.

Lincoln Electric has a net margin of 12.38% compared to MSC Industrial Direct's net margin of 5.42%. Lincoln Electric's return on equity of 39.33% beat MSC Industrial Direct's return on equity.

Company Net Margins Return on Equity Return on Assets
Lincoln Electric12.38% 39.33% 14.93%
MSC Industrial Direct 5.42%16.06%9.01%

79.6% of Lincoln Electric shares are held by institutional investors. Comparatively, 79.3% of MSC Industrial Direct shares are held by institutional investors. 1.7% of Lincoln Electric shares are held by company insiders. Comparatively, 19.0% of MSC Industrial Direct shares are held by company insiders. Strong institutional ownership is an indication that large money managers, hedge funds and endowments believe a stock will outperform the market over the long term.

Lincoln Electric has higher revenue and earnings than MSC Industrial Direct. Lincoln Electric is trading at a lower price-to-earnings ratio than MSC Industrial Direct, indicating that it is currently the more affordable of the two stocks.

CompanyGross RevenuePrice/Sales RatioNet IncomeEarnings Per SharePrice/Earnings Ratio
Lincoln Electric$4.23B3.54$520.53M$9.6928.25
MSC Industrial Direct$3.77B1.76$199.33M$3.7232.03

Lincoln Electric pays an annual dividend of $3.16 per share and has a dividend yield of 1.2%. MSC Industrial Direct pays an annual dividend of $3.48 per share and has a dividend yield of 2.9%. Lincoln Electric pays out 32.6% of its earnings in the form of a dividend. MSC Industrial Direct pays out 93.5% of its earnings in the form of a dividend, suggesting it may not have sufficient earnings to cover its dividend payment in the future. Lincoln Electric has increased its dividend for 30 consecutive years and MSC Industrial Direct has increased its dividend for 3 consecutive years.

Lincoln Electric presently has a consensus target price of $299.00, indicating a potential upside of 9.24%. MSC Industrial Direct has a consensus target price of $101.00, indicating a potential downside of 15.25%. Given Lincoln Electric's stronger consensus rating and higher probable upside, analysts plainly believe Lincoln Electric is more favorable than MSC Industrial Direct.

Company Sell Ratings Hold Ratings Buy Ratings Strong Buy Ratings Rating Score
Lincoln Electric
1 Sell rating(s)
3 Hold rating(s)
5 Buy rating(s)
0 Strong Buy rating(s)
2.44
MSC Industrial Direct
0 Sell rating(s)
8 Hold rating(s)
2 Buy rating(s)
0 Strong Buy rating(s)
2.20

In the previous week, Lincoln Electric had 5 more articles in the media than MSC Industrial Direct. MarketBeat recorded 7 mentions for Lincoln Electric and 2 mentions for MSC Industrial Direct. Lincoln Electric's average media sentiment score of 0.75 beat MSC Industrial Direct's score of 0.40 indicating that Lincoln Electric is being referred to more favorably in the media.

Company Very Positive Positive Neutral Negative Very Negative Overall Sentiment
Lincoln Electric
5 Very Positive mention(s)
0 Positive mention(s)
1 Neutral mention(s)
0 Negative mention(s)
0 Very Negative mention(s)
Positive
MSC Industrial Direct
0 Very Positive mention(s)
0 Positive mention(s)
2 Neutral mention(s)
0 Negative mention(s)
0 Very Negative mention(s)
Neutral

Summary

Lincoln Electric beats MSC Industrial Direct on 16 of the 19 factors compared between the two stocks.

How does MSC Industrial Direct compare to Applied Industrial Technologies?

MSC Industrial Direct (NYSE:MSM) and Applied Industrial Technologies (NYSE:AIT) are both industrials companies, but which is the superior investment? We will compare the two businesses based on the strength of their profitability, valuation, media sentiment, risk, earnings, analyst recommendations, dividends and institutional ownership.

Applied Industrial Technologies has higher revenue and earnings than MSC Industrial Direct. MSC Industrial Direct is trading at a lower price-to-earnings ratio than Applied Industrial Technologies, indicating that it is currently the more affordable of the two stocks.

CompanyGross RevenuePrice/Sales RatioNet IncomeEarnings Per SharePrice/Earnings Ratio
MSC Industrial Direct$3.77B1.76$199.33M$3.7232.03
Applied Industrial Technologies$4.56B2.78$392.99M$10.5932.36

Applied Industrial Technologies has a net margin of 8.34% compared to MSC Industrial Direct's net margin of 5.42%. Applied Industrial Technologies' return on equity of 21.64% beat MSC Industrial Direct's return on equity.

Company Net Margins Return on Equity Return on Assets
MSC Industrial Direct5.42% 16.06% 9.01%
Applied Industrial Technologies 8.34%21.64%12.91%

MSC Industrial Direct presently has a consensus price target of $101.00, indicating a potential downside of 15.25%. Applied Industrial Technologies has a consensus price target of $323.14, indicating a potential downside of 5.70%. Given Applied Industrial Technologies' stronger consensus rating and higher possible upside, analysts clearly believe Applied Industrial Technologies is more favorable than MSC Industrial Direct.

Company Sell Ratings Hold Ratings Buy Ratings Strong Buy Ratings Rating Score
MSC Industrial Direct
0 Sell rating(s)
8 Hold rating(s)
2 Buy rating(s)
0 Strong Buy rating(s)
2.20
Applied Industrial Technologies
0 Sell rating(s)
1 Hold rating(s)
6 Buy rating(s)
0 Strong Buy rating(s)
2.86

79.3% of MSC Industrial Direct shares are held by institutional investors. Comparatively, 93.5% of Applied Industrial Technologies shares are held by institutional investors. 19.0% of MSC Industrial Direct shares are held by company insiders. Comparatively, 1.6% of Applied Industrial Technologies shares are held by company insiders. Strong institutional ownership is an indication that large money managers, endowments and hedge funds believe a company will outperform the market over the long term.

MSC Industrial Direct pays an annual dividend of $3.48 per share and has a dividend yield of 2.9%. Applied Industrial Technologies pays an annual dividend of $2.04 per share and has a dividend yield of 0.6%. MSC Industrial Direct pays out 93.5% of its earnings in the form of a dividend, suggesting it may not have sufficient earnings to cover its dividend payment in the future. Applied Industrial Technologies pays out 19.3% of its earnings in the form of a dividend. MSC Industrial Direct has raised its dividend for 3 consecutive years and Applied Industrial Technologies has raised its dividend for 16 consecutive years.

MSC Industrial Direct has a beta of 0.84, meaning that its share price is 16% less volatile than the broader market. Comparatively, Applied Industrial Technologies has a beta of 0.84, meaning that its share price is 16% less volatile than the broader market.

In the previous week, Applied Industrial Technologies had 8 more articles in the media than MSC Industrial Direct. MarketBeat recorded 10 mentions for Applied Industrial Technologies and 2 mentions for MSC Industrial Direct. Applied Industrial Technologies' average media sentiment score of 0.81 beat MSC Industrial Direct's score of 0.40 indicating that Applied Industrial Technologies is being referred to more favorably in the news media.

Company Very Positive Positive Neutral Negative Very Negative Overall Sentiment
MSC Industrial Direct
0 Very Positive mention(s)
0 Positive mention(s)
2 Neutral mention(s)
0 Negative mention(s)
0 Very Negative mention(s)
Neutral
Applied Industrial Technologies
5 Very Positive mention(s)
0 Positive mention(s)
3 Neutral mention(s)
0 Negative mention(s)
0 Very Negative mention(s)
Positive

Summary

Applied Industrial Technologies beats MSC Industrial Direct on 16 of the 18 factors compared between the two stocks.

How does MSC Industrial Direct compare to Donaldson?

MSC Industrial Direct (NYSE:MSM) and Donaldson (NYSE:DCI) are both mid-cap industrials companies, but which is the better investment? We will compare the two businesses based on the strength of their risk, valuation, institutional ownership, media sentiment, analyst recommendations, dividends, earnings and profitability.

MSC Industrial Direct pays an annual dividend of $3.48 per share and has a dividend yield of 2.9%. Donaldson pays an annual dividend of $1.28 per share and has a dividend yield of 1.4%. MSC Industrial Direct pays out 93.5% of its earnings in the form of a dividend, suggesting it may not have sufficient earnings to cover its dividend payment in the future. Donaldson pays out 34.4% of its earnings in the form of a dividend. MSC Industrial Direct has raised its dividend for 3 consecutive years and Donaldson has raised its dividend for 38 consecutive years.

Donaldson has a net margin of 11.52% compared to MSC Industrial Direct's net margin of 5.42%. Donaldson's return on equity of 29.17% beat MSC Industrial Direct's return on equity.

Company Net Margins Return on Equity Return on Assets
MSC Industrial Direct5.42% 16.06% 9.01%
Donaldson 11.52%29.17%14.98%

Donaldson has lower revenue, but higher earnings than MSC Industrial Direct. Donaldson is trading at a lower price-to-earnings ratio than MSC Industrial Direct, indicating that it is currently the more affordable of the two stocks.

CompanyGross RevenuePrice/Sales RatioNet IncomeEarnings Per SharePrice/Earnings Ratio
MSC Industrial Direct$3.77B1.76$199.33M$3.7232.03
Donaldson$3.69B2.79$367M$3.7223.91

MSC Industrial Direct has a beta of 0.84, suggesting that its stock price is 16% less volatile than the broader market. Comparatively, Donaldson has a beta of 0.95, suggesting that its stock price is 5% less volatile than the broader market.

MSC Industrial Direct currently has a consensus target price of $101.00, indicating a potential downside of 15.25%. Donaldson has a consensus target price of $97.83, indicating a potential upside of 9.98%. Given Donaldson's stronger consensus rating and higher probable upside, analysts plainly believe Donaldson is more favorable than MSC Industrial Direct.

Company Sell Ratings Hold Ratings Buy Ratings Strong Buy Ratings Rating Score
MSC Industrial Direct
0 Sell rating(s)
8 Hold rating(s)
2 Buy rating(s)
0 Strong Buy rating(s)
2.20
Donaldson
0 Sell rating(s)
2 Hold rating(s)
3 Buy rating(s)
0 Strong Buy rating(s)
2.60

79.3% of MSC Industrial Direct shares are held by institutional investors. Comparatively, 82.8% of Donaldson shares are held by institutional investors. 19.0% of MSC Industrial Direct shares are held by insiders. Comparatively, 2.2% of Donaldson shares are held by insiders. Strong institutional ownership is an indication that large money managers, endowments and hedge funds believe a company will outperform the market over the long term.

In the previous week, Donaldson had 3 more articles in the media than MSC Industrial Direct. MarketBeat recorded 5 mentions for Donaldson and 2 mentions for MSC Industrial Direct. Donaldson's average media sentiment score of 1.39 beat MSC Industrial Direct's score of 0.40 indicating that Donaldson is being referred to more favorably in the news media.

Company Very Positive Positive Neutral Negative Very Negative Overall Sentiment
MSC Industrial Direct
0 Very Positive mention(s)
0 Positive mention(s)
2 Neutral mention(s)
0 Negative mention(s)
0 Very Negative mention(s)
Neutral
Donaldson
3 Very Positive mention(s)
0 Positive mention(s)
1 Neutral mention(s)
0 Negative mention(s)
1 Very Negative mention(s)
Positive

Summary

Donaldson beats MSC Industrial Direct on 14 of the 18 factors compared between the two stocks.

How does MSC Industrial Direct compare to Dover?

MSC Industrial Direct (NYSE:MSM) and Dover (NYSE:DOV) are both industrials companies, but which is the superior business? We will contrast the two businesses based on the strength of their earnings, media sentiment, valuation, dividends, profitability, analyst recommendations, institutional ownership and risk.

79.3% of MSC Industrial Direct shares are held by institutional investors. Comparatively, 84.5% of Dover shares are held by institutional investors. 19.0% of MSC Industrial Direct shares are held by insiders. Comparatively, 1.1% of Dover shares are held by insiders. Strong institutional ownership is an indication that endowments, hedge funds and large money managers believe a stock is poised for long-term growth.

MSC Industrial Direct presently has a consensus price target of $101.00, indicating a potential downside of 15.25%. Dover has a consensus price target of $239.85, indicating a potential upside of 4.03%. Given Dover's stronger consensus rating and higher possible upside, analysts plainly believe Dover is more favorable than MSC Industrial Direct.

Company Sell Ratings Hold Ratings Buy Ratings Strong Buy Ratings Rating Score
MSC Industrial Direct
0 Sell rating(s)
8 Hold rating(s)
2 Buy rating(s)
0 Strong Buy rating(s)
2.20
Dover
0 Sell rating(s)
6 Hold rating(s)
8 Buy rating(s)
0 Strong Buy rating(s)
2.57

Dover has a net margin of 13.30% compared to MSC Industrial Direct's net margin of 5.42%. Dover's return on equity of 18.01% beat MSC Industrial Direct's return on equity.

Company Net Margins Return on Equity Return on Assets
MSC Industrial Direct5.42% 16.06% 9.01%
Dover 13.30%18.01%10.10%

MSC Industrial Direct has a beta of 0.84, suggesting that its share price is 16% less volatile than the broader market. Comparatively, Dover has a beta of 1.17, suggesting that its share price is 17% more volatile than the broader market.

MSC Industrial Direct pays an annual dividend of $3.48 per share and has a dividend yield of 2.9%. Dover pays an annual dividend of $2.08 per share and has a dividend yield of 0.9%. MSC Industrial Direct pays out 93.5% of its earnings in the form of a dividend, suggesting it may not have sufficient earnings to cover its dividend payment in the future. Dover pays out 25.9% of its earnings in the form of a dividend. MSC Industrial Direct has raised its dividend for 3 consecutive years and Dover has raised its dividend for 70 consecutive years.

In the previous week, MSC Industrial Direct had 1 more articles in the media than Dover. MarketBeat recorded 2 mentions for MSC Industrial Direct and 1 mentions for Dover. MSC Industrial Direct's average media sentiment score of 0.40 beat Dover's score of 0.00 indicating that MSC Industrial Direct is being referred to more favorably in the media.

Company Very Positive Positive Neutral Negative Very Negative Overall Sentiment
MSC Industrial Direct
0 Very Positive mention(s)
0 Positive mention(s)
2 Neutral mention(s)
0 Negative mention(s)
0 Very Negative mention(s)
Neutral
Dover
0 Very Positive mention(s)
0 Positive mention(s)
1 Neutral mention(s)
0 Negative mention(s)
0 Very Negative mention(s)
Neutral

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

CompanyGross RevenuePrice/Sales RatioNet IncomeEarnings Per SharePrice/Earnings Ratio
MSC Industrial Direct$3.77B1.76$199.33M$3.7232.03
Dover$8.09B3.84$1.09B$8.0228.75

Summary

Dover beats MSC Industrial Direct on 14 of the 19 factors compared between the two stocks.

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New MarketBeat Followers Over Time

This chart shows the number of new MarketBeat users adding MSM and its top 5 competitors to their watchlist. Each company is represented with a line over a 90 day period.
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Media Sentiment Over Time

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.
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MSM vs. The Competition

MetricMSC Industrial DirectIndustrial Services IndustryIndustrials SectorNYSE Exchange
Market Cap$6.51B$21.75B$9.55B$23.14B
Dividend Yield2.99%6.67%3.54%4.06%
P/E Ratio32.0322.3925.6631.50
Price / Sales1.762.144,837.2120.68
Price / Cash21.5013.7327.7824.53
Price / Book4.763.374.584.69
Net Income$199.33M$712.91M$792.16M$1.07B
7 Day Performance0.64%-4.38%-0.86%-0.15%
1 Month Performance9.34%-7.37%-0.47%-0.18%
1 Year Performance40.47%0.99%22.55%23.79%

MSC Industrial Direct Competitors List

CompanyMarketRankShare PriceAnalysts' Price Target1Y Price PerformanceMarket CapRevenueP/E RatioEmployee CountIndicator(s)
MSM
MSC Industrial Direct
2.29 of 5 stars
$119.17
+2.2%
$101.00
-15.2%
+45.3%$6.51B$3.77B32.037,284
FAST
Fastenal
3.505 of 5 stars
$46.10
-1.0%
$49.85
+8.1%
+14.1%$52.92B$8.20B40.4424,489
LECO
Lincoln Electric
4.6611 of 5 stars
$267.86
+3.7%
$296.00
+10.5%
+32.4%$14.68B$4.35B27.6412,000
AIT
Applied Industrial Technologies
3.8355 of 5 stars
$316.38
-1.2%
$313.67
-0.9%
+52.3%$11.69B$4.84B29.876,800
DCI
Donaldson
4.5908 of 5 stars
$86.43
+0.0%
$97.83
+13.2%
+28.8%$10.02B$3.69B23.2315,000

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This page (NYSE:MSM) was last updated on 6/26/2026 by MarketBeat.com Staff.
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