DXPE vs FAST: How DXP Enterprises, Inc. and Fastenal Compare (2026)

Same yardstick, side by side (as of August 2026). Valuation lined up like this is most meaningful for two names in the same corner of the market, which these are. Figures are approximate; verify before investing.

Reading it: DXPE is the cheaper of the two on forward earnings, but cheaper is not the same as better. Pair the valuation with growth (how far the forward P/E sits below the trailing P/E) and risk (beta) before you decide.

The metrics above tell you which is the marginally better business. The bigger risk for most people is not picking the slightly worse stock, it is over-concentrating. DXPE and FAST share themes, so owning both, or adding either to what you already hold, can quietly push a large share of your portfolio into one bet.

This is the part a generic comparison page cannot answer, because it depends on what you own. Connect your brokerage and Walnut shows your real, combined DXPE and FAST exposure, flags overlap with your existing positions, and tells you if adding one would tip you past a concentration you are comfortable with, read-only by default, with your login staying at your broker. Walnut is not an investment adviser.

DXP Enterprises distributes maintenance, repair and operating (MRO) products and engineers pumping systems for industrial customers, a business whose roots go back to 1908. It runs three segments. Service Centers is the branch network that sells bearings, seals, safety products, hoses and rotating equipment out of local locations, and it produced about $368 million of the $576.5 million booked in the second quarter of 2026. Innovative Pumping Solutions designs and fabricates custom pump packages and skids for water and wastewater, fire protection, data centers, HVAC and energy customers, and it contributed about $143 million. Supply Chain Services runs procurement and inventory programs inside customer plants and added about $66 million. The mix matters because the three lines have very different growth and margin profiles, and the fast-growing one is now the engineered-systems business rather than the branch network.

Full DXPE guide

Fastenal is a leading industrial distributor that supplies fasteners (bolts, nuts, screws) and a broad range of maintenance, repair, and operations (MRO) products such as tools, safety equipment, cutting tools, fluids, and janitorial supplies to manufacturers, construction firms, and other businesses. While fasteners are its heritage and namesake, the company today derives a majority of revenue from non-fastener industrial and MRO products. Fastenal's competitive edge comes from being physically close to its customers: it operates thousands of branches and, increasingly, on-site locations placed directly inside customers' facilities, plus a fast-growing network of industrial vending machines that dispense supplies right on the shop floor. This high-touch, high-service model creates sticky relationships and recurring revenue, since customers rely on Fastenal to keep production lines stocked. The company makes money on the markup between what it pays suppliers and what it charges customers, with vending, on-site programs, and e-commerce deepening those relationships. Fastenal is headquartered in Winona, Minnesota, and is a member of the S&P 500.

Full FAST guide

Both fit overlapping themes, but they are not interchangeable. The useful comparison is which set of drivers and risks you want exposure to.

• DXPE drivers: The water and wastewater pivot; Innovative Pumping Solutions as the growth engine.
• FAST drivers: On-site and vending growth; Sticky distribution model.

A faster-growing, richer-valued name usually swings harder, so it suits a longer horizon and a higher tolerance for volatility; a steadier, more cash-generative business suits a more conservative or income-minded investor. The honest test is which set of risks you could hold through a drawdown: DXP sells into industrial capital and maintenance budgets, so revenue moves with the industrial cycle and with energy and petrochemical spending in particular. For FAST, fastenal's revenue is closely tied to industrial production, manufacturing activity, and the broader economy, so recessions or manufacturing slowdowns directly pressure sales and same-store growth.

Growth-minded investors who believe the theme has years to run tend to accept the richer multiple for more upside; value-minded investors lean toward the cheaper forward earnings and steadier profile. Pick DXPE if you believe its drivers more; FAST if you believe its. Many investors hold both, but since they share themes, that is a concentrated bet, not diversification. Decide deliberately and check overlap. For the full detail, see the DXPE and FAST guides.

DXPE. DXP prices well above where industrial distributors historically trade, at roughly 30 times trailing earnings and around 11 to 12 times enterprise value to trailing adjusted EBITDA, against roughly $119 million of trailing free cash flow. That premium reflects three things the market has re-rated: organic growth in the low double digits, a margin structure improving with the engineered-systems mix, and an end-market shift toward water that carries lower cyclicality than DXP's energy-levered past. It also means the stock now depends on the acquisition cadence and the pumping backlog holding up, because the multiple no longer assumes a distributor's ordinary growth rate.

FAST. Fastenal trades at a premium multiple for an industrial distributor, reflecting its consistent execution, high returns on capital, sticky on-site and vending model, and reliable dividend growth. The market pays up for the quality and recurring nature of its revenue, which makes the valuation sensitive to any slowdown in industrial activity or same-customer growth.

Headline figures (approximate, August 2026): DXPE shows revenue (ttm) ~$2.14 billion, q2 2026 sales growth ~15.6% year over year to ~$576.5 million (organic ~11.1%), adjusted ebitda (q2 2026) ~$70.4 million, a ~12.2% margin, up ~22.8%, diluted eps ~$1.76 in Q2 2026, ~$5.68 trailing twelve months; FAST shows revenue (ttm) ~$7.5-8 billion, operating margin ~20%, revenue growth Mid-single-digit, cyclical with industry, return on invested capital High, consistently strong.

DXPE and FAST are related but distinct: same themes, different businesses and risks. Neither wins in the abstract; the right pick is whichever thesis you actually believe, sized so you are not over-concentrated in one theme. Walnut can show your combined DXPE and FAST exposure against your real portfolio. It is not an investment adviser.