Applied Industrial Technologies, Inc. (AIT) vs Fastenal Company (FAST)
Applied Industrial Technologies, Inc. and Fastenal Company are both Industrial Distribution companies. Fastenal Company is the larger, with a market value of $58.1B against $12.2B — 4.8× the size. Applied Industrial Technologies, Inc. trades at the lower P/E: 30.1× against 42.7×. Fastenal Company grew revenue faster over the last twelve months: 12.5% against 8.84%. Fastenal Company has the higher net margin (15.5% vs 8.35%) and the higher return on invested capital (27.9% vs 17.2%). Both pay a dividend; Fastenal Company yields more (2.22% vs 0.78%). Across the 23 metrics below, Fastenal Company leads on 13 and Applied Industrial Technologies, Inc. on 10.
Valuation
Profitability
| Metric | AIT | FAST | Industrial Distribution median |
|---|---|---|---|
| Gross margin | 30.34% | 44.70% | 30.34% |
| Operating margin | 11.06% | 20.29% | 8.06% |
| Net margin | 8.35% | 15.45% | 4.95% |
| Free cash flow margin | 9.29% | 13.36% | 4.67% |
| Return on equity | 22.37% | 34.33% | 14.29% |
| Return on assets | 13.40% | 26.23% | 5.30% |
| Return on invested capital | 17.20% | 27.85% | 8.13% |
Growth
Health
Dividend
Size
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