Fastenal (NASDAQ:FAST) Director Michael Ancius Sells 3,000 Shares

Fastenal Company (NASDAQ:FAST) Director Michael Ancius sold 3,000 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, July 28th. The stock was sold at an average price of $49.00, for a total value of $147,000.00. Following the transaction, the director owned 58,690 shares in the company, valued at $2,875,810. This trade represents a 4.86% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is accessible through the SEC website.

Fastenal Stock Down 0.6%

Shares of NASDAQ FAST traded down $0.28 during mid-day trading on Wednesday, hitting $47.82. 10,038,614 shares of the stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 8,116,919. The company has a market cap of $54.87 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 40.53, a PEG ratio of 2.98 and a beta of 0.72. The stock has a fifty day moving average price of $46.09 and a 200-day moving average price of $45.48. Fastenal Company has a 52 week low of $38.97 and a 52 week high of $50.63. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.01, a quick ratio of 2.21 and a current ratio of 4.18.

Fastenal (NASDAQ:FAST) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, July 14th. The company reported $0.33 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, hitting analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.33. Fastenal had a return on equity of 34.03% and a net margin of 15.45%.The business had revenue of $2.39 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $2.34 billion. During the same quarter in the prior year, the company earned $0.29 earnings per share. The firm’s quarterly revenue was up 14.7% compared to the same quarter last year. Research analysts anticipate that Fastenal Company will post 1.25 EPS for the current year.

Fastenal Increases Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, August 25th. Investors of record on Tuesday, July 28th will be paid a dividend of $0.26 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Tuesday, July 28th. This is an increase from Fastenal’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.24. This represents a $1.04 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.2%. Fastenal’s payout ratio is presently 81.36%.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Fastenal

Institutional investors have recently made changes to their positions in the company. State Street Corp boosted its stake in Fastenal by 1.2% during the 4th quarter. State Street Corp now owns 54,734,674 shares of the company’s stock valued at $2,196,502,000 after purchasing an additional 631,889 shares during the last quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. raised its stake in shares of Fastenal by 2.0% in the fourth quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. now owns 47,297,047 shares of the company’s stock worth $1,898,031,000 after purchasing an additional 919,158 shares during the last quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC raised its stake in shares of Fastenal by 1.9% in the fourth quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 37,699,836 shares of the company’s stock worth $1,508,216,000 after purchasing an additional 685,047 shares during the last quarter. Invesco Ltd. lifted its holdings in shares of Fastenal by 14.0% during the third quarter. Invesco Ltd. now owns 18,215,875 shares of the company’s stock valued at $893,307,000 after purchasing an additional 2,242,116 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Bank of America Corp DE boosted its position in shares of Fastenal by 12.0% during the first quarter. Bank of America Corp DE now owns 16,292,425 shares of the company’s stock valued at $755,969,000 after buying an additional 1,744,193 shares during the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 81.38% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several research firms have recently issued reports on FAST. Rothschild & Co Redburn set a $55.00 target price on shares of Fastenal and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Monday, July 13th. Bank of America upped their price target on Fastenal from $48.00 to $55.00 in a research note on Monday, April 13th. DA Davidson reiterated a “neutral” rating and set a $46.00 price objective on shares of Fastenal in a research note on Wednesday, July 15th. Wolfe Research reissued an “underperform” rating and issued a $47.00 target price on shares of Fastenal in a report on Thursday, July 9th. Finally, Robert W. Baird cut their target price on Fastenal from $52.00 to $50.00 and set an “outperform” rating on the stock in a research note on Tuesday, April 14th. Five analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, six have assigned a Hold rating and two have issued a Sell rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, Fastenal presently has an average rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $48.83.

Fastenal Company Profile

Fastenal (NASDAQ: FAST) is a wholesale distributor of industrial and construction supplies, best known for its broad assortment of fasteners such as bolts, nuts, screws and anchors. Founded in Winona, Minnesota, Fastenal has grown from a regional supplier into a national and international distributor serving a wide range of end markets, including manufacturing, construction, maintenance, repair and operations (MRO), and government customers. The company is publicly traded and operates through a network of locally staffed branches combined with national distribution capabilities.

Product offerings extend beyond fasteners to include tools, safety and personal protective equipment, power transmission components, cutting and welding supplies, janitorial and material handling items, and other industrial consumables.