Hudson Technologies (NASDAQ:HDSN) vs. Fastenal (NASDAQ:FAST) Head-To-Head Review

Hudson Technologies (NASDAQ:HDSN) and Fastenal (NASDAQ:FAST) are both industrials companies, but which is the superior business? We will compare the two companies based on the strength of their earnings, analyst recommendations, institutional ownership, dividends, profitability, valuation and risk.

Profitability

This table compares Hudson Technologies and Fastenal’s net margins, return on equity and return on assets.

	Net Margins	Return on Equity	Return on Assets
Hudson Technologies	3.51%	4.95%	3.81%
Fastenal	15.45%	34.03%	26.16%

Volatility & Risk

Hudson Technologies has a beta of 0.83, suggesting that its share price is 17% less volatile than the S&P 500. Comparatively, Fastenal has a beta of 0.69, suggesting that its share price is 31% less volatile than the S&P 500.

Insider and Institutional Ownership

71.3% of Hudson Technologies shares are held by institutional investors. Comparatively, 81.4% of Fastenal shares are held by institutional investors. 1.9% of Hudson Technologies shares are held by company insiders. Comparatively, 0.3% of Fastenal shares are held by company insiders. Strong institutional ownership is an indication that endowments, hedge funds and large money managers believe a stock will outperform the market over the long term.

Analyst Recommendations

This is a breakdown of recent recommendations and price targets for Hudson Technologies and Fastenal, as reported by MarketBeat.

	Sell Ratings	Hold Ratings	Buy Ratings	Strong Buy Ratings	Rating Score
Hudson Technologies	1	2	2	0	2.20
Fastenal	2	5	6	0	2.31

Hudson Technologies currently has a consensus price target of $8.62, suggesting a potential upside of 68.46%. Fastenal has a consensus price target of $49.50, suggesting a potential downside of 3.86%. Given Hudson Technologies’ higher possible upside, equities research analysts clearly believe Hudson Technologies is more favorable than Fastenal.

Valuation and Earnings

This table compares Hudson Technologies and Fastenal”s revenue, earnings per share (EPS) and valuation.

	Gross Revenue	Price/Sales Ratio	Net Income	Earnings Per Share	Price/Earnings Ratio
Hudson Technologies	$256.92 million	0.84	$16.67 million	$0.20	25.60
Fastenal	$8.20 billion	7.21	$1.26 billion	$1.18	43.64

Fastenal has higher revenue and earnings than Hudson Technologies. Hudson Technologies is trading at a lower price-to-earnings ratio than Fastenal, indicating that it is currently the more affordable of the two stocks.

Summary

Fastenal beats Hudson Technologies on 11 of the 14 factors compared between the two stocks.

About Hudson Technologies

Hudson Technologies, Inc., through its subsidiary, Hudson Technologies Company, engages in the provision of solutions to recurring problems within the refrigeration industry in the United States. The company engages in the sale of refrigerant and industrial gas; provision of refrigerant management services consisting primarily of reclamation of refrigerants, re-usable cylinder refurbishment, and hydrostatic testing services; and RefrigerantSide services comprising system decontamination and recovery to remove moisture, oils, and other contaminants. It also offers Chiller Chemistry, which integrates several fluid tests of an operating system and the corresponding laboratory results into an engineering report; Fluid Chemistry, an abbreviated version of Chiller Chemistry, which is designed to quickly identify systems that require further examination; SmartEnergy OPS, a web-based real time continuous monitoring system, for measuring, modifying and improving the efficiency of energy systems, including air conditioning and refrigeration systems, in industrial and commercial applications; and ChillSmart, which combines the system optimization with Chiller Chemistry for providing a snapshot of a packaged chiller's operating efficiency and health. In addition, the company participates in the generation of carbon offset projects. It serves commercial, industrial, and governmental customers, as well as refrigerant wholesalers, distributors, contractors, and refrigeration equipment manufacturers. The company was incorporated in 1991 and is headquartered in Woodcliff Lake, New Jersey.

About Fastenal

Fastenal Company, together with its subsidiaries, engages in the wholesale distribution of industrial and construction supplies in the United States, Canada, Mexico, North America, and internationally. It offers fasteners, and related industrial and construction supplies under the Fastenal name. The company’s fastener products include threaded fasteners, bolts, nuts, screws, studs, and related washers that are used in manufactured products and construction projects, as well as in the maintenance and repair of machines. It also offers miscellaneous supplies and hardware, including pins, machinery keys, concrete anchors, metal framing systems, wire ropes, strut products, rivets, and related accessories. The company serves the manufacturing market comprising original equipment manufacturers; maintenance, repair, and operations customers; non-residential construction market; farmers, truckers, railroads, mining companies, schools, and retail trades; and oil exploration, production, and refinement companies, as well as federal, state, and local governmental entities. Fastenal Company was founded in 1967 and is headquartered in Winona, Minnesota.