SG Americas Securities LLC Purchases 115,040 Shares of Fastenal Company $FAST

SG Americas Securities LLC increased its holdings in shares of Fastenal Company (NASDAQ:FAST) by 380.8% during the second quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund owned 145,251 shares of the company’s stock after acquiring an additional 115,040 shares during the period. SG Americas Securities LLC’s holdings in Fastenal were worth $6,101,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently bought and sold shares of the company. 1248 Management LLC bought a new stake in shares of Fastenal during the first quarter worth $36,000. Riverview Trust Co lifted its position in Fastenal by 100.0% during the 2nd quarter. Riverview Trust Co now owns 584 shares of the company’s stock worth $25,000 after buying an additional 292 shares in the last quarter. Zions Bancorporation National Association UT acquired a new position in Fastenal during the 1st quarter worth about $49,000. Private Wealth Management Group LLC grew its holdings in Fastenal by 111.9% during the 2nd quarter. Private Wealth Management Group LLC now owns 642 shares of the company’s stock worth $27,000 after acquiring an additional 339 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Hilltop National Bank acquired a new stake in Fastenal in the 2nd quarter valued at about $27,000. 81.38% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Insider Activity at Fastenal

In other news, Director Hsenghung Sam Hsu purchased 1,000 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, November 13th. The shares were acquired at an average cost of $49.58 per share, for a total transaction of $49,580.00. Following the transaction, the director directly owned 10,000 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $495,800. The trade was a 11.11% increase in their position. The acquisition was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available at this link. 0.37% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Fastenal Stock Performance

Shares of Fastenal stock opened at $39.70 on Tuesday. The firm has a fifty day moving average of $44.57 and a two-hundred day moving average of $44.43. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.03, a quick ratio of 2.19 and a current ratio of 4.26. The stock has a market capitalization of $45.58 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 37.10, a PEG ratio of 3.75 and a beta of 0.92. Fastenal Company has a 52 week low of $35.31 and a 52 week high of $50.63.

Fastenal (NASDAQ:FAST) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, October 14th. The company reported $0.29 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $0.30 by ($0.01). The company had revenue of $2.13 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $2.13 billion. Fastenal had a return on equity of 32.69% and a net margin of 15.34%.The firm’s revenue for the quarter was up 11.7% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the prior year, the business earned $0.26 earnings per share. As a group, equities research analysts predict that Fastenal Company will post 2.15 EPS for the current year.

Fastenal Dividend Announcement

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, November 25th. Stockholders of record on Tuesday, October 28th will be given a dividend of $0.22 per share. This represents a $0.88 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 2.2%. The ex-dividend date is Tuesday, October 28th. Fastenal’s payout ratio is presently 82.24%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of equities analysts have recently issued reports on the stock. Sanford C. Bernstein assumed coverage on shares of Fastenal in a research report on Tuesday, November 11th. They set an “underperform” rating and a $38.00 target price on the stock. Wolfe Research raised Fastenal from an “underperform” rating to a “peer perform” rating and set a $43.00 price objective on the stock in a report on Thursday, November 13th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. increased their price objective on Fastenal from $41.00 to $46.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research report on Thursday, September 4th. Weiss Ratings reissued a “buy (b)” rating on shares of Fastenal in a research note on Wednesday, October 8th. Finally, Baird R W raised Fastenal from a “hold” rating to a “strong-buy” rating in a research note on Thursday, August 7th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, three have issued a Buy rating, nine have assigned a Hold rating and two have issued a Sell rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock presently has an average rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $46.32.

Fastenal Company Profile

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.