FAST vs. LECO: Fastenal vs. Lincoln Electric Stock Comparison

November 11, 2026

How do Fastenal (FAST) and Lincoln Electric (LECO) stack up? This page sets them side by side across company profile, performance and risk, profitability, growth, financial strength, dividends, and valuation, with selected fundamentals also measured against each stock's industry-group peers.

Company Profile

Fastenal (FAST) and Lincoln Electric (LECO) both fall under the Capital Goods industry group, but FAST is classified in Trading Companies & Distributors while LECO is classified in Machinery.

Company profile comparison for Fastenal (FAST) and Lincoln Electric (LECO)
Profile Item	FAST	LECO
Name	Fastenal Co.	Lincoln Electric Holdings, Inc.
Country/Region	United States	United States
GICS Sector	Industrials	Industrials
GICS Industry Group	Capital Goods	Capital Goods
GICS Industry	Trading Companies & Distributors	Machinery
GICS Sub-Industry	Trading Companies & Distributors	Industrial Machinery & Supplies & Components
Market Capitalization	60.80 billion USD	14.91 billion USD
Currency	USD	USD
Exchange	Nasdaq	Nasdaq
Listing Date	August 20, 1987	April 7, 1994
Security Type	Common Stock	Common Stock

Price Performance

Cumulative Growth

FAST

LECO

GSPC

Fastenal (FAST) vs. Lincoln Electric (LECO), with S&P 500 (GSPC) for reference: Growth of a $10,000 investment over the past five years. Adjusted for dividends and splits.

Trailing Returns

Loading price history…

Trailing total returns for Fastenal (FAST) and Lincoln Electric (LECO). Returns over one year are annualized.

Calendar-Year Returns

Loading price history…

Calendar-year total returns for Fastenal (FAST) and Lincoln Electric (LECO). Each bar is that year's total return, measured year-end to year-end.

Performance Metrics

Price performance metrics for Fastenal (FAST) and Lincoln Electric (LECO)
Metric	FAST	LECO
Total Return (1Y)	36.82%	27.30%
Total Return (3Y, Annualized)	25.71%	17.31%
Total Return (5Y, Annualized)	15.98%	16.33%

Risk Profile

Drawdown History

FAST

LECO

GSPC

Fastenal (FAST) vs. Lincoln Electric (LECO), with S&P 500 (GSPC) for reference: Drawdown from the running peak over the past five years. Each line shows the decline from its prior peak; 0% marks a new high.

Return Distribution

Loading price history…

Distribution of monthly total returns for Fastenal (FAST) and Lincoln Electric (LECO). Each bar is the share of months whose return fell in that 5% bucket.

Risk Metrics

Risk profile metrics for Fastenal (FAST) and Lincoln Electric (LECO)
Metric	FAST	LECO
Volatility (1Y, Annualized)	24.55%	31.13%
Beta (5Y)	0.64	1.17
Max Drawdown (5Y)	-30.71%	-34.29%
Avg. Volume (3M)	7.21M	409.99K

Risk-Adjusted Performance

Risk-Return Positioning

FAST and LECO are plotted by 1-year volatility (risk) and 1-year return. The dashed Capital Allocation Line runs from the risk-free rate through the shared industry median.

Risk-Adjusted Metrics

Risk-adjusted metrics for Fastenal (FAST) and Lincoln Electric (LECO)
Metric	FAST	LECO
Sharpe Ratio (1Y)	1.33	0.74
Sortino Ratio (1Y)	2.00	1.11

Profitability

ROE (TTM)

Both Fastenal (FAST) at 35.26% and Lincoln Electric (LECO) at 38.75% sit in the top peer quartile for ROE, suggesting each generates more profit from shareholders’ equity than typical industry peers.

FAST

Capital Goods industry group

35.26%

Max: 40.55%
FAST: 35.26%
Q3: 19.29%
Median: 12.12%
Q1: 4.08%
Min: -17.12%

LECO

Capital Goods industry group

38.75%

Max: 40.55%
LECO: 38.75%
Q3: 19.29%
Median: 12.12%
Q1: 4.08%
Min: -17.12%

Fastenal (FAST) vs. Lincoln Electric (LECO): A comparison of their ROE against the Capital Goods industry group benchmark.

Net Margin (TTM)

For every dollar of sales, both Fastenal (FAST) at 15.62% and Lincoln Electric (LECO) at 12.40% retain more as net profit than most peers, landing in the top net margin quartile of their industries.

FAST

Capital Goods industry group

15.62%

Max: 27.47%
FAST: 15.62%
Q3: 12.10%
Median: 6.30%
Q1: 1.40%
Min: -12.89%

LECO

Capital Goods industry group

12.40%

Max: 27.47%
LECO: 12.40%
Q3: 12.10%
Median: 6.30%
Q1: 1.40%
Min: -12.89%

Fastenal (FAST) vs. Lincoln Electric (LECO): A comparison of their net margin against the Capital Goods industry group benchmark.

Operating Margin (TTM)

Fastenal (FAST) at 21.55% operates in the top operating margin quartile, ahead of Lincoln Electric (LECO) at 18.29%, which runs around its industry’s norm.

FAST

Capital Goods industry group

21.55%

Max: 36.60%
FAST: 21.55%
Q3: 18.33%
Median: 11.12%
Q1: 5.14%
Min: -12.63%

LECO

Capital Goods industry group

18.29%

Max: 36.60%
Q3: 18.33%
LECO: 18.29%
Median: 11.12%
Q1: 5.14%
Min: -12.63%

Fastenal (FAST) vs. Lincoln Electric (LECO): A comparison of their operating margin against the Capital Goods industry group benchmark.

Profitability Metrics

Profitability metrics for Fastenal (FAST) and Lincoln Electric (LECO)
Metric	FAST	LECO
ROE (TTM)	35.26%	38.75%
ROA (TTM)	21.97%	13.32%
Net Margin (TTM)	15.62%	12.40%
Operating Margin (TTM)	21.55%	18.29%
Gross Margin (TTM)	44.61%	35.54%

Growth

Revenue Growth

Both Fastenal (FAST) at 8.67% and Lincoln Electric (LECO) at 5.60% land near their industries' usual revenue growth ranges, so top-line momentum looks broadly in line with peers on both sides.

Fastenal (FAST) vs. Lincoln Electric (LECO): A comparison of their Revenue Growth across different time periods.

EPS Growth

Both Fastenal (FAST) at 9.00% and Lincoln Electric (LECO) at 14.36% land near their industries' usual EPS growth ranges, so bottom-line momentum looks broadly in line with peers on both sides.

Fastenal (FAST) vs. Lincoln Electric (LECO): A comparison of their EPS Growth across different time periods.

Growth Metrics

Growth metrics for Fastenal (FAST) and Lincoln Electric (LECO)
Metric	FAST	LECO
Revenue Growth (YoY)	8.67%	5.60%
Revenue Growth (3Y CAGR)	5.52%	4.02%
EPS Growth (YoY)	9.00%	14.36%
EPS Growth (3Y CAGR)	4.87%	5.05%

Financial Strength

Current Ratio (MRQ)

Lincoln Electric (LECO) at 1.91 keeps current ratio within its industry’s typical mid-range, while Fastenal (FAST) at 3.93 sits above its industry’s typical mid-range — comfortable liquidity, though possibly with more idle current assets relative to peers.

FAST

Capital Goods industry group

3.93

Max: 5.22
FAST: 3.93
Q3: 2.95
Median: 2.08
Q1: 1.43
Min: 0.36

LECO

Capital Goods industry group

1.91

Max: 5.22
Q3: 2.95
Median: 2.08
LECO: 1.91
Q1: 1.43
Min: 0.36

Fastenal (FAST) vs. Lincoln Electric (LECO): A comparison of their current ratio against the Capital Goods industry group benchmark.

Debt / Equity (MRQ)

Fastenal (FAST) at 0.11 keeps leverage in the lower industry quartile, while Lincoln Electric (LECO) at 0.78 runs a more typical debt-to-equity mix.

FAST

Capital Goods industry group

0.11

Max: 2.33
Q3: 1.12
Median: 0.60
Q1: 0.29
FAST: 0.11
Min: 0.00

LECO

Capital Goods industry group

0.78

Max: 2.33
Q3: 1.12
LECO: 0.78
Median: 0.60
Q1: 0.29
Min: 0.00

Fastenal (FAST) vs. Lincoln Electric (LECO): A comparison of their debt-to-equity ratio against the Capital Goods industry group benchmark.

Financial Strength Metrics

Financial strength metrics for Fastenal (FAST) and Lincoln Electric (LECO)
Metric	FAST	LECO
Current Ratio (MRQ)	3.93	1.91
Debt / Equity (MRQ)	0.11	0.78
Net Debt / EBITDA	0.12	1.00

Dividends

Dividend Yield (TTM)

Both Fastenal (FAST) at 1.81% and Lincoln Electric (LECO) at 1.16% offer top-quartile dividend income relative to share price within their industries.

FAST

Capital Goods industry group

1.81%

Max: 2.66%
FAST: 1.81%
Q3: 1.14%
Median: 0.24%
Q1: 0.00%
Min: 0.00%

LECO

Capital Goods industry group

1.16%

Max: 2.66%
LECO: 1.16%
Q3: 1.14%
Median: 0.24%
Q1: 0.00%
Min: 0.00%

Fastenal (FAST) vs. Lincoln Electric (LECO): A comparison of their dividend yield against the Capital Goods industry group benchmark.

Dividend Payout Ratio (TTM)

Both pay out more than their industries’ typical bands, and FAST more so: Lincoln Electric (LECO) at 30.30% sits above the band, while Fastenal (FAST) at 78.05% exceeds every peer in its group.

FAST

Capital Goods industry group

78.05%

FAST: 78.05%
Max: 67.39%
Q3: 28.02%
Median: 6.86%
Q1: 0.00%
Min: 0.00%

LECO

Capital Goods industry group

30.30%

Max: 67.39%
LECO: 30.30%
Q3: 28.02%
Median: 6.86%
Q1: 0.00%
Min: 0.00%

Fastenal (FAST) vs. Lincoln Electric (LECO): A comparison of their payout ratio against the Capital Goods industry group benchmark.

Dividend Metrics

Dividend metrics for Fastenal (FAST) and Lincoln Electric (LECO)
Metric	FAST	LECO
Dividend Yield (TTM)	1.81%	1.16%
Dividend Payout Ratio (TTM)	78.05%	30.30%

Valuation

P/E Ratio (TTM)

Lincoln Electric (LECO) at 26.40 is near its industry’s usual P/E ratio, while Fastenal (FAST) at 43.08 sits in the richer quartile — FAST needs stronger growth or earnings quality to justify the premium.

FAST

Capital Goods industry group

43.08

Max: 59.38
FAST: 43.08
Q3: 35.92
Median: 25.41
Q1: 19.47
Min: 3.03

LECO

Capital Goods industry group

26.40

Max: 59.38
Q3: 35.92
LECO: 26.40
Median: 25.41
Q1: 19.47
Min: 3.03

Fastenal (FAST) vs. Lincoln Electric (LECO): A comparison of their P/E ratio against the Capital Goods industry group benchmark.

P/S Ratio (TTM)

Lincoln Electric (LECO) at 3.21 is priced about in line with its industry on P/S ratio, while Fastenal (FAST) at 6.70 sits in the pricier quartile — FAST costs more per dollar of sales.

FAST

Capital Goods industry group

6.70

Max: 7.54
FAST: 6.70
Q3: 3.76
Median: 2.15
Q1: 1.03
Min: 0.03

LECO

Capital Goods industry group

3.21

Max: 7.54
Q3: 3.76
LECO: 3.21
Median: 2.15
Q1: 1.03
Min: 0.03

Fastenal (FAST) vs. Lincoln Electric (LECO): A comparison of their P/S ratio against the Capital Goods industry group benchmark.

P/B Ratio (MRQ)

Both look rich against book: Lincoln Electric (LECO) at 9.59 sits in the upper P/B ratio quartile, and Fastenal (FAST) at 14.65 prices even higher, above its industry range.

FAST

Capital Goods industry group

14.65

FAST: 14.65
Max: 9.66
Q3: 5.00
Median: 3.12
Q1: 1.81
Min: -1.08

LECO

Capital Goods industry group

9.59

Max: 9.66
LECO: 9.59
Q3: 5.00
Median: 3.12
Q1: 1.81
Min: -1.08

Fastenal (FAST) vs. Lincoln Electric (LECO): A comparison of their P/B ratio against the Capital Goods industry group benchmark.

Valuation Metrics

Valuation metrics for Fastenal (FAST) and Lincoln Electric (LECO)
Metric	FAST	LECO
P/E Ratio (TTM)	43.08	26.40
P/S Ratio (TTM)	6.70	3.21
P/B Ratio (MRQ)	14.65	9.59
Free Cash Flow Yield (TTM)	1.51%	2.68%