Verdict: Side-by-side breakdown using the Bull Rankings model. AIT scored 65.9, CNM scored 60.0 — AIT leads.
Compare another set
AIT
Applied Industrial Technologies, Inc.
Industrial Distribution · Quality-Growth
65.9
$335.38 · $12.3B
fundamentals as of
Score gap
5.9
AIT leads
CNM
Core & Main, Inc.
Industrial Distribution · Quality-Growth
60
$40.35 · $7.4B
fundamentals as of
At a glance · who leads each dimension, on the model's own rules
CheapestCNM16.6x
Fastest growthAIT+8.8%
Strongest balance sheetAIT0.26
Highest qualityAIT85 / 100
Largest discount to fair valueCNM-36%
Side by side · every name on one set of axes
Growth against the P/E multiple. Up and to the right is cheaper and faster — the quality-growth idea in one picture. Points beyond the axis are pinned to the edge and marked off-scale rather than allowed to compress everything else.
The model, pillar by pillar (0–100 each)
AIT
stronger →← stronger
CNM
85
Qualityreturns · margins · balance sheet
68
70
Growthrevenue & earnings expansion
59
48
Valuevaluation vs sector peers
54
AIT is stronger on 2 of 3 pillars.
Fundamentals, head-to-head
AIT
CNM
$461mC
FCF
$628mC+
+8.8%B
Rev
+2.8%C
0.26A-
D/E
1.31C
30.6xC+
P/E
16.6xA-
2.77C
PEG
1.43B
Winner per row is the stronger grade; where grades tie, the better figure breaks it. A true tie or a missing value shows no highlight.
Valuation · DCF cross-check
AIT
CNM
42% above
Price vs fair valuelower is cheaper
36% below
~15%/yr
Growth the price impliesyr-1 FCF growth, fading to 4% · lower = less priced in
~-3%/yr
-34%
1-yr DCF upside
+43%
-30%
5-yr DCF upside
+57%
-22%
10-yr DCF upside
+78%
The DCF is a cross-check on intrinsic value, separate from the quality-growth score above.
Model signals
AIT
Why this score
Buying back stock
Raising its dividend
Durable high returns
CNM
Why this score
Durable high returns
The companies
AITApplied Industrial Technologies, Inc.
Industrial Distribution · $335.38 · beta 0.85
Why now
Industrial Distribution · market cap $12.3b. 11% off the 52-week high of $374.80. 6 sell-side analysts publish a mean 1-yr target of $400.00 (implying +19% upside).
Moat
ROE 22% is above 15% — the equity base is compounding at a rate the market struggles to discount accurately. FCF converts 111% of net income — earnings translate cleanly into cash.
Risk
Trailing P/E 31x sits well above the S&P median (~20x) — multiple compression is a real risk if revenue growth decelerates.
CNMCore & Main, Inc.
Industrial Distribution · $40.35 · beta 0.91
Why now
Industrial Distribution · market cap $7.4b. Down 32% from 52-week high of $59.66 — deep drawdown territory. 13 sell-side analysts rate this a Buy with a mean 1-yr target of $54.54 (implying +35% upside).
Moat
ROE 24% is above 15% — the equity base is compounding at a rate the market struggles to discount accurately. FCF converts 137% of net income — earnings translate cleanly into cash.
Risk
Down 32% from the 52-week high — the market is pricing in something the screen can't see; verify the bear case before sizing up.
Verdict — model-derived comparison
Generating verdict… typically 5–10 seconds
Not investment advice. The Bull Rankings publishes a quantitative ranking model and accompanying analysis for general informational purposes only. Nothing on this page is a recommendation to buy, sell, or hold any security; nothing is personalized to your circumstances, risk tolerance, or tax situation. Investing carries the risk of loss — invest at your own risk and consider consulting a licensed financial professional before acting on anything you read here. See terms and methodology for full disclosures.
Where AIT and CNM diverge
On the headline score the gap is 5.9 points in favor of AIT. They get there differently, though — each leads on a different pillar, so the better pick depends on which you weight.
QualityAIT 84.8 · CNM 67.7AIT +17.1
GrowthAIT 70.2 · CNM 59.4AIT +10.8
ValueAIT 48.0 · CNM 53.6CNM +5.6
Pillars run 0–100. Value is judged against each company's own sector, so a Value score is a statement about a company relative to its own industry rather than to the other name here. A wide Value gap usually means the market already prices the difference in quality or growth — which is the trade-off this comparison comes down to.
Common questions
Is AIT or CNM the better stock?
AIT scores higher: AIT 65.9, CNM 60.0 out of 100 on the Bull Rankings quality-growth score, which blends business quality, growth and valuation into one number. A higher score means a stronger business at a more reasonable price — it is not a price target or a recommendation.
Where do AIT and CNM differ most?
The widest gap is quality, where AIT leads by 17 points on the 0–100 pillar scale. Neither name sweeps: they trade the lead across the three pillars, so the comparison is a trade-off rather than one being better on every measure.
How are AIT and CNM scored?
Each carries the same 0–100 quality-growth score used everywhere on the site, built from three pillars — quality (profitability and returns on capital), growth (revenue and earnings), and value (what you pay for them) — combined as a geometric mean, so a weak pillar cannot be papered over by a strong one.
How current is this comparison?
The whole universe is re-scored every trading day after the US market close, so the scores and fundamentals here reflect the latest published edition.