Parkside Financial Bank & Trust Trims Position in Fastenal (NASDAQ:FAST)

Parkside Financial Bank & Trust cut its position in Fastenal (NASDAQ:FAST) by 3.2% in the fourth quarter, HoldingsChannel.com reports. The firm owned 6,317 shares of the company’s stock after selling 208 shares during the quarter. Parkside Financial Bank & Trust’s holdings in Fastenal were worth $409,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other institutional investors also recently bought and sold shares of FAST. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. lifted its holdings in Fastenal by 3.2% during the 3rd quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. now owns 13,830,951 shares of the company’s stock valued at $751,780,000 after buying an additional 423,112 shares in the last quarter. Morgan Stanley grew its holdings in shares of Fastenal by 4.1% during the third quarter. Morgan Stanley now owns 8,582,669 shares of the company’s stock valued at $468,957,000 after buying an additional 337,168 shares during the last quarter. Northern Trust Corp boosted its holdings in Fastenal by 5.9% in the third quarter. Northern Trust Corp now owns 7,444,498 shares of the company’s stock valued at $406,767,000 after purchasing an additional 413,572 shares during the last quarter. Invesco Ltd. raised its position in shares of Fastenal by 16.5% in the third quarter. Invesco Ltd. now owns 6,745,302 shares of the company’s stock worth $368,563,000 after acquiring an additional 957,091 shares during the period. Finally, Royal Bank of Canada raised its position in shares of Fastenal by 9.3% during the 3rd quarter. Royal Bank of Canada now owns 6,651,629 shares of the company’s stock worth $363,445,000 after purchasing an additional 568,372 shares during the last quarter. 81.38% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of analysts have commented on the stock. Robert W. Baird cut their price objective on shares of Fastenal from $77.00 to $71.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a report on Friday, April 12th. HSBC raised their price objective on shares of Fastenal from $59.00 to $64.00 and gave the company a “hold” rating in a report on Monday, April 15th. Stifel Nicolaus raised their price objective on shares of Fastenal from $75.00 to $85.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Monday, March 18th. Finally, Loop Capital reduced their price objective on shares of Fastenal from $71.00 to $66.00 and set a “hold” rating on the stock in a report on Monday, April 15th. Five analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and one has issued a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat.com, Fastenal currently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $67.67.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other Fastenal news, insider Jeffery Michael Watts sold 19,420 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, February 20th. The shares were sold at an average price of $70.25, for a total transaction of $1,364,255.00. Following the completion of the sale, the insider now directly owns 5,940 shares in the company, valued at $417,285. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available through this link. In other Fastenal news, insider William Joseph Drazkowski sold 11,968 shares of the stock in a transaction on Thursday, January 25th. The shares were sold at an average price of $69.10, for a total transaction of $826,988.80. Following the transaction, the insider now directly owns 5,997 shares in the company, valued at approximately $414,392.70. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this hyperlink. Also, insider Jeffery Michael Watts sold 19,420 shares of the stock in a transaction on Tuesday, February 20th. The stock was sold at an average price of $70.25, for a total transaction of $1,364,255.00. Following the sale, the insider now directly owns 5,940 shares in the company, valued at $417,285. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold a total of 48,050 shares of company stock worth $3,411,049 over the last ninety days. 0.41% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

Fastenal Price Performance

FAST stock traded up $0.31 during trading on Wednesday, reaching $67.43. 761,354 shares of the company were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 4,001,899. The company has a market cap of $38.61 billion, a P/E ratio of 33.42, a PEG ratio of 3.53 and a beta of 1.05. Fastenal has a 52-week low of $52.28 and a 52-week high of $79.04. The stock’s 50 day moving average price is $73.54 and its 200 day moving average price is $66.63. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.06, a quick ratio of 2.49 and a current ratio of 4.83.

Fastenal (NASDAQ:FAST) last announced its earnings results on Thursday, April 11th. The company reported $0.52 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.53 by ($0.01). The business had revenue of $1.90 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $1.91 billion. Fastenal had a return on equity of 33.98% and a net margin of 15.68%. The business’s revenue was up 1.9% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the previous year, the firm posted $0.52 EPS. As a group, analysts predict that Fastenal will post 2.12 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Fastenal Dividend Announcement

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, May 23rd. Investors of record on Thursday, April 25th will be given a dividend of $0.39 per share. This represents a $1.56 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.31%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Wednesday, April 24th. Fastenal’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 77.23%.

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.