Stratos Wealth Partners LTD. Boosts Stake in Fastenal Company $FAST

Stratos Wealth Partners LTD. increased its holdings in shares of Fastenal Company (NASDAQ:FAST) by 6.0% during the third quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor owned 218,214 shares of the company’s stock after purchasing an additional 12,304 shares during the quarter. Stratos Wealth Partners LTD.’s holdings in Fastenal were worth $10,701,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC).

Several other large investors also recently bought and sold shares of FAST. Vanguard Group Inc. boosted its holdings in shares of Fastenal by 103.5% during the 2nd quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 149,169,494 shares of the company’s stock valued at $6,265,119,000 after acquiring an additional 75,852,223 shares during the last quarter. State Street Corp lifted its position in Fastenal by 99.6% during the second quarter. State Street Corp now owns 54,317,385 shares of the company’s stock valued at $2,281,330,000 after purchasing an additional 27,107,520 shares during the period. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. boosted its holdings in Fastenal by 103.4% in the second quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. now owns 45,995,937 shares of the company’s stock worth $1,931,830,000 after purchasing an additional 23,380,022 shares during the last quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC grew its position in Fastenal by 103.8% in the 2nd quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 35,984,281 shares of the company’s stock worth $1,506,141,000 after purchasing an additional 18,329,847 shares during the period. Finally, Bank of New York Mellon Corp grew its position in Fastenal by 87.9% in the 2nd quarter. Bank of New York Mellon Corp now owns 34,851,036 shares of the company’s stock worth $1,463,743,000 after purchasing an additional 16,308,254 shares during the period. 81.38% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of research firms have recently issued reports on FAST. Robert W. Baird raised their price target on Fastenal from $49.00 to $51.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research note on Thursday, February 5th. Wolfe Research lowered their target price on Fastenal from $43.00 to $42.00 and set an “underperform” rating on the stock in a report on Wednesday, January 21st. Weiss Ratings restated a “buy (b-)” rating on shares of Fastenal in a research note on Monday, December 29th. Sanford C. Bernstein reiterated an “underperform” rating on shares of Fastenal in a research note on Wednesday, January 21st. Finally, Jefferies Financial Group set a $52.00 price objective on shares of Fastenal and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Monday, December 15th. Four investment analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, seven have issued a Hold rating and two have assigned a Sell rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, Fastenal has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $48.18.

Insider Activity at Fastenal

In related news, Director Sarah N. Nielsen acquired 1,000 shares of Fastenal stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, November 19th. The shares were purchased at an average price of $39.60 per share, for a total transaction of $39,600.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the director directly owned 5,000 shares in the company, valued at approximately $198,000. This represents a 25.00% increase in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through the SEC website. Also, Director Scott Satterlee sold 15,964 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Friday, January 23rd. The stock was sold at an average price of $44.19, for a total transaction of $705,449.16. Following the transaction, the director owned 50,000 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $2,209,500. This represents a 24.20% decrease in their position. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. Company insiders own 0.37% of the company’s stock.

Fastenal Stock Performance

FAST opened at $47.02 on Thursday. The company has a 50 day simple moving average of $42.91 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $44.44. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.03, a current ratio of 4.85 and a quick ratio of 2.41. The firm has a market cap of $53.99 billion, a P/E ratio of 42.75, a PEG ratio of 2.98 and a beta of 0.89. Fastenal Company has a 1-year low of $35.31 and a 1-year high of $50.63.

Fastenal (NASDAQ:FAST) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, January 20th. The company reported $0.26 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, hitting analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.26. Fastenal had a return on equity of 32.83% and a net margin of 15.35%.The business had revenue of $2.03 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $2.04 billion. During the same quarter in the prior year, the business posted $0.46 EPS. Fastenal’s revenue for the quarter was up 11.1% compared to the same quarter last year. Equities analysts forecast that Fastenal Company will post 2.15 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Fastenal Increases Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, February 26th. Shareholders of record on Thursday, January 29th will be paid a $0.24 dividend. This represents a $0.96 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.0%. The ex-dividend date is Thursday, January 29th. This is a positive change from Fastenal’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.22. Fastenal’s dividend payout ratio is currently 87.27%.

Fastenal 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.