Fastenal Company (FAST)

FairStock Score: 60/100 — STEADY

Key Financials

AI Analysis

AI-generated, general educational analysis — not personal investment advice.

Fastenal is a high-quality industrial distributor, selling fasteners and related supplies that factories and construction customers need to keep operating. In fiscal FY2025, the year ended 2025-12-31, filed revenue was $8.2B, net income $1.3B, and diluted EPS $1.09. FY2024 revenue was $7.5B, net income $1.2B, and EPS $1.00; FY2023 revenue was $7.3B, net income $1.2B, and EPS $1.01. The latest filed quarter, fiscal Q2 2026 ended 2026-06-30, showed revenue $2.4B, net income $382.8M, and EPS $0.33, with a 16.04% net margin. Those are respectable, consistent figures. FairStock calculations also show ROE of 34.33%, ROCE of 21.52%, debt/equity of 0.11, and an Altman Z-score of 31.38—a strong balance sheet and excellent returns on capital. Yet at the 2026-10-13 close of $51.43, the same calculations show a P/E of 43.96, P/B of 14.49, PEG of 2.77, EV/EBITDA of 30.24, and FCF yield of 2.0%. The Graham Number is $9.67, giving a negative margin of safety of -431.85%. FairStock’s Lynch category is SLOW GROWER, based on 5-year profit growth of 7.9% and revenue growth of 7.7%. I see a fine business with a durable distribution position and conservative finances, but the price already assumes much better growth than the filed record has delivered. Quality without a discount is not Graham’s idea of value.

In plain English: Fastenal sells industrial and construction supplies, especially fasteners, to businesses. The company looks financially strong: it makes steady profits, carries little debt, and earns high returns on the money invested in it. But the stock price looks expensive compared with those profits and assets, so the shares appear to be priced for a lot of good news.

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Data as of 2026-10-13 close · note generated 2026-10-15 · model deepseek-flash

Sources (SEC EDGAR): fiscal Q2 2026 10-Q (period ended 2026-06-30) · fiscal Q1 2026 10-Q (period ended 2026-03-31) · fiscal Q3 2025 10-Q (period ended 2025-09-30) · fiscal Q2 2025 10-Q (period ended 2025-06-30) · FY2025 10-K (period ended 2025-12-31) · FY2024 10-K (period ended 2024-12-31) · FY2023 10-K (period ended 2023-12-31)

Fundamentals from company filings and market-data providers; prices are end-of-day, not real-time. AI-generated analysis is general and educational — not personal investment advice. Scoring methodology · Score test · Disclaimer