Fastenal Company vs Caterpillar Inc.
FAST wins the Tale of the Tape 8–1.
🏆 Tale of the Tape
Green = winner in each category. Higher is better except P/E (lower = cheaper).
Rolling Correlation
Low correlation — excellent diversification pair.
Fundamentals
| Metric | FAST | CAT |
|---|---|---|
| Market Cap | $52.2B | $405.4B |
| P/E Ratio | 39.9x | 43.7x |
| Forward P/E | 32.5x | 28.9x |
| P/B | 12.83x | 21.73x |
| Dividend Yield | 2.06% | 0.74% |
| Beta | 0.71 | 1.56 |
Quantitative Metrics
| Metric | FAST | CAT |
|---|---|---|
| DCF Fair Value | $26.73 | $153.26 |
| DCF Upside | -41.2% | -82.6% |
| Piotroski F | 7/9 | 6/9 |
| Altman Z | 32.67 | 5.36 |
| Beneish M | -2.44 | -2.43 |
| FCF Yield | 2.02% | 1.75% |
| Net Debt/EBITDA | -0.1x | 1.4x |
| ROIC | 30.3% | 15.3% |
| WACC | 9.3% | 13.7% |
| ROIC – WACC | 21.0pp | 1.7pp |
| Gross Margin | 45.0% | 31.8% |
| Net Margin | 15.3% | 13.1% |
| Rev Growth YoY | 8.7% | 4.3% |
| Sharpe (1Y) | -0.02 | 2.10 |
| Max Drawdown 3Y | — | — |
| FCF Payout Ratio | 96% | 37% |
FAST Price
CAT Price
ETF Exposure
FAST found in:
CAT found in:
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Quant metrics computed from financial statements and 1,200+ trading days. Correlation is Pearson coefficient on daily log returns. Not investment advice.
FAST vs CAT: Head-to-Head Analysis
Fastenal Company (FAST) and Caterpillar Inc. (CAT) represent two companies in the Industrials sector. In our quantitative Tale of the Tape scoring, FAST leads 8–1 across nine fundamental and risk metrics including profitability, valuation, capital efficiency, and financial health.
In terms of capital efficiency, FAST generates a return on invested capital (ROIC) of 30.3% compared to CAT's 15.3%. This suggests FAST is more effective at deploying capital to generate shareholder returns.
The 252-day rolling correlation between FAST and CAT is 0.278, indicating low correlation, making them an effective diversification pair in a portfolio context.
FAST appears in 38 ETFs tracked by SecuritiesDB, while CAT appears in 37 ETFs. Investors holding broad-market ETFs may already have indirect exposure to both stocks.
Frequently Asked Questions
Which stock is the better investment, FAST or CAT?
Our quantitative analysis compares FAST and CAT across nine fundamental dimensions. FAST wins the Tale of the Tape 8–1. However, stock selection depends on your individual risk tolerance, time horizon, and portfolio context. These metrics are computed from SEC filings and market data — they are not investment recommendations.
Are FAST and CAT correlated?
The 252-day correlation between FAST and CAT is 0.278. They have low correlation, offering good diversification.
How is the Tale of the Tape scored?
The Tale of the Tape compares both stocks across nine categories: profitability (net margin), valuation (P/E), efficiency (ROIC), health (Piotroski F-Score), safety (Altman Z-Score), growth (revenue YoY), risk (Sharpe ratio), leverage (debt-to-equity), and cash generation (FCF yield). The stock that wins more categories takes the overall score. Lower P/E and lower debt-to-equity count as wins.