FAST vs. NVT: Fastenal vs. nVent Electric Stock Comparison

November 11, 2026

How do Fastenal (FAST) and nVent Electric (NVT) 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 nVent Electric (NVT) both fall under the Capital Goods industry group, but FAST is classified in Trading Companies & Distributors while NVT is classified in Electrical Equipment.

Company profile comparison for Fastenal (FAST) and nVent Electric (NVT)
Profile Item	FAST	NVT
Name	Fastenal Co.	nVent Electric plc
Country/Region	United States	United Kingdom
GICS Sector	Industrials	Industrials
GICS Industry Group	Capital Goods	Capital Goods
GICS Industry	Trading Companies & Distributors	Electrical Equipment
GICS Sub-Industry	Trading Companies & Distributors	Electrical Components & Equipment
Market Capitalization	60.80 billion USD	17.16 billion USD
Currency	USD	USD
Exchange	Nasdaq	NYSE
Listing Date	August 20, 1987	April 24, 2018
Security Type	Common Stock	Common Stock

Price Performance

Cumulative Growth

FAST

NVT

GSPC

Fastenal (FAST) vs. nVent Electric (NVT), 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

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

Calendar-Year Returns

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

Performance Metrics

Price performance metrics for Fastenal (FAST) and nVent Electric (NVT)
Metric	FAST	NVT
Total Return (1Y)	36.82%	2.86%
Total Return (3Y, Annualized)	25.71%	32.72%
Total Return (5Y, Annualized)	15.98%	26.96%

Risk Profile

Drawdown History

FAST

NVT

GSPC

Fastenal (FAST) vs. nVent Electric (NVT), 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

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

Risk Metrics

nVent Electric (NVT) has an aggressive beta of 1.41, indicating higher sensitivity to broad-market moves, while Fastenal (FAST) is defensive at 0.64 and tends to be less market-sensitive — they sit on opposite ends of the beta spectrum.

Risk profile metrics for Fastenal (FAST) and nVent Electric (NVT)
Metric	FAST	NVT
Volatility (1Y, Annualized)	24.55%	53.94%
Beta (5Y)	0.64	1.41
Max Drawdown (5Y)	-30.71%	-46.67%
Avg. Volume (3M)	7.21M	2.54M

Risk-Adjusted Performance

Risk-Return Positioning

FAST and NVT 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 nVent Electric (NVT)
Metric	FAST	NVT
Sharpe Ratio (1Y)	1.33	-0.03
Sortino Ratio (1Y)	2.00	-0.03

Profitability

ROE (TTM)

Fastenal (FAST) at 35.26% sits in the top ROE quartile, while nVent Electric (NVT) at 17.42% is closer to the peer norm — stronger capital efficiency for FAST.

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%

NVT

Capital Goods industry group

17.42%

Max: 40.55%
Q3: 19.29%
NVT: 17.42%
Median: 12.12%
Q1: 4.08%
Min: -17.12%

Fastenal (FAST) vs. nVent Electric (NVT): 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 nVent Electric (NVT) at 12.83% 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%

NVT

Capital Goods industry group

12.83%

Max: 27.47%
NVT: 12.83%
Q3: 12.10%
Median: 6.30%
Q1: 1.40%
Min: -12.89%

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

Operating Margin (TTM)

Both Fastenal (FAST) at 21.55% and nVent Electric (NVT) at 18.75% convert sales into operating profit at a top-quartile rate, pointing to tighter cost discipline before financing and tax.

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%

NVT

Capital Goods industry group

18.75%

Max: 36.60%
NVT: 18.75%
Q3: 18.33%
Median: 11.12%
Q1: 5.14%
Min: -12.63%

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

Profitability Metrics

Profitability metrics for Fastenal (FAST) and nVent Electric (NVT)
Metric	FAST	NVT
ROE (TTM)	35.26%	17.42%
ROA (TTM)	21.97%	7.88%
Net Margin (TTM)	15.62%	12.83%
Operating Margin (TTM)	21.55%	18.75%
Gross Margin (TTM)	44.61%	36.17%

Growth

Revenue Growth

nVent Electric (NVT) at 29.51% sits in the top revenue growth quartile, while Fastenal (FAST) at 8.67% is closer to the peer norm — faster top-line expansion for NVT.

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

EPS Growth

nVent Electric (NVT) at 118.78% clears its industry range for EPS growth, a much stronger earnings trajectory than Fastenal (FAST) at 9.00%, which is closer to a typical peer reading.

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

Growth Metrics

Growth metrics for Fastenal (FAST) and nVent Electric (NVT)
Metric	FAST	NVT
Revenue Growth (YoY)	8.67%	29.51%
Revenue Growth (3Y CAGR)	5.52%	19.26%
EPS Growth (YoY)	9.00%	118.78%
EPS Growth (3Y CAGR)	4.87%	21.89%

Financial Strength

Current Ratio (MRQ)

nVent Electric (NVT) at 2.40 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

NVT

Capital Goods industry group

2.40

Max: 5.22
Q3: 2.95
NVT: 2.40
Median: 2.08
Q1: 1.43
Min: 0.36

Fastenal (FAST) vs. nVent Electric (NVT): 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 nVent Electric (NVT) at 0.57 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

NVT

Capital Goods industry group

0.57

Max: 2.33
Q3: 1.12
Median: 0.60
NVT: 0.57
Q1: 0.29
Min: 0.00

Fastenal (FAST) vs. nVent Electric (NVT): 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 nVent Electric (NVT)
Metric	FAST	NVT
Current Ratio (MRQ)	3.93	2.40
Debt / Equity (MRQ)	0.11	0.57
Net Debt / EBITDA	0.12	1.05

Dividends

Dividend Yield (TTM)

Fastenal (FAST) at 1.81% delivers top-quartile income for its industry, while nVent Electric (NVT) at 0.84% pays a more typical yield — both are credible income propositions, FAST the richer one.

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%

NVT

Capital Goods industry group

0.84%

Max: 2.66%
Q3: 1.14%
NVT: 0.84%
Median: 0.24%
Q1: 0.00%
Min: 0.00%

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

Dividend Payout Ratio (TTM)

nVent Electric (NVT) at 20.15% keeps its payout in the industry’s typical band, while Fastenal (FAST) at 78.05% pays out more than any of its peers — the most stretched cover 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%

NVT

Capital Goods industry group

20.15%

Max: 67.39%
Q3: 28.02%
NVT: 20.15%
Median: 6.86%
Q1: 0.00%
Min: 0.00%

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

Dividend Metrics

Dividend metrics for Fastenal (FAST) and nVent Electric (NVT)
Metric	FAST	NVT
Dividend Yield (TTM)	1.81%	0.84%
Dividend Payout Ratio (TTM)	78.05%	20.15%

Valuation

P/E Ratio (TTM)

nVent Electric (NVT) at 25.78 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

NVT

Capital Goods industry group

25.78

Max: 59.38
Q3: 35.92
NVT: 25.78
Median: 25.41
Q1: 19.47
Min: 3.03

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

P/S Ratio (TTM)

nVent Electric (NVT) at 3.24 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

NVT

Capital Goods industry group

3.24

Max: 7.54
Q3: 3.76
NVT: 3.24
Median: 2.15
Q1: 1.03
Min: 0.03

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

P/B Ratio (MRQ)

nVent Electric (NVT) at 4.17 sits near its industry’s typical P/B ratio, while Fastenal (FAST) at 14.65 prices above its benchmark range — FAST looks rich relative to book.

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

NVT

Capital Goods industry group

4.17

Max: 9.66
Q3: 5.00
NVT: 4.17
Median: 3.12
Q1: 1.81
Min: -1.08

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

Valuation Metrics

Valuation metrics for Fastenal (FAST) and nVent Electric (NVT)
Metric	FAST	NVT
P/E Ratio (TTM)	43.08	25.78
P/S Ratio (TTM)	6.70	3.24
P/B Ratio (MRQ)	14.65	4.17
Free Cash Flow Yield (TTM)	1.51%	2.93%