Sunday, February 6, 2022

Fastenal Operationally Sound, But Cycle Pressures May Be More Challenging

 

There is little to find fault with at Fastenal (FAST) from an operational perspective, and valuation is pretty binary – either you’re comfortable paying a hefty premium to buy/own a top-quality industrial supplier, or you’re not. That doesn’t mean that Fastenal is completely immune to larger cyclical concerns, as the shares have historically had a tougher time in periods where IP growth is slowing off recent peaks.

Fastenal shares are up a bit from my last update, outperforming MSC Industrial (MSM) and the broader industrial sector, but underperforming Grainger (GWW) and Applied Industrial (AIT). Little has changed with my basic thesis – I have no meaningful long-term operational concerns with Fastenal, but I remain concerned that the demanding valuation will make sustained outperformance more challenging in the future.

 

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 Fastenal Operationally Sound, But Cycle Pressures May Be More Challenging

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