Core & Main vs Fastenal
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KIRA’s take AI analyst
I put Core & Main and Fastenal side by side, using each one’s latest annual report. Here is what stands out:
- Fastenal is the larger business, with $8.2B of revenue in fiscal 2025 against $7.6B for Core & Main.
- Fastenal grew revenue faster (8.7%, against 2.8%).
- Fastenal kept more of each dollar of sales as operating profit (20.2% operating margin, against 9.4%).
- Fastenal turned more of its sales into free cash flow (12.8% FCF margin, against 7.9%).
- Fastenal earned a higher return on the capital invested in it (34.3%, against 13.7%).
- Investors pay more for each dollar of Fastenal’s earnings: a P/E of 42.7x against 17.4x for Core & Main.
Who comes out ahead
Of the 11 measures where higher (or lower) is clearly better, how many each company leads.
Core & Main
CNM
2/11
5-year growthShare count change
Fastenal
FAST
8/11
Revenue growthGross marginOperating marginNet marginFCF marginReturn on capitalReturn on equityNet debt / EBITDA
Side by side
Best in the row
| Latest fiscal year | CNM FY25 | FAST FY25 |
|---|---|---|
| Size | ||
| Market cap | $8.2B | $60.3B |
| Revenue | $7.6B | $8.2B |
| Free cash flow | $604M | $1.1B |
| Net income | $441M | $1.3B |
| Growth | ||
| Revenue growth | 2.8% | 8.7% |
| 5-year growth | 16.0% | 7.8% |
| Share count change | −1.8% | 0.2% |
| Profitability | ||
| Gross margin | 26.9% | 45.0% |
| Operating margin | 9.4% | 20.2% |
| Net margin | 5.8% | 15.4% |
| FCF margin | 7.9% | 12.8% |
| Return on capital | 13.7% | 34.3% |
| Return on equity | 23.9% | 33.3% |
| Balance sheet | ||
| Net debt | $1.9B | −$152M |
| Net debt / EBITDA | 2.1x | −0.1x |
| Dividends and buybacks | $155M | $1.0B |
| Valuation & quality | ||
| P/E | 17.4x | 42.7x |
| Piotroski F-score | 7 | 7 |
Ten years
Revenue
Operating margin
Free cash flow
Return on capital
Each company's latest fiscal year; fiscal years end in different months. The best value in each row is highlighted where higher (or lower) is clearly better. Not investment advice.