Fastenal (NASDAQ:FAST) EVP Anthony Paul Broersma Sells 680 Shares

Fastenal (NASDAQ:FAST) EVP Anthony Paul Broersma sold 680 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, October 16th. The stock was sold at an average price of $77.86, for a total value of $52,944.80. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is accessible through the SEC website.

Fastenal Price Performance

NASDAQ:FAST traded down $0.03 during mid-day trading on Friday, hitting $77.61. 1,105,031 shares of the stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 3,357,899. The company has a quick ratio of 2.29, a current ratio of 4.39 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.04. Fastenal has a 12-month low of $56.41 and a 12-month high of $79.04. The company has a market cap of $44.44 billion, a PE ratio of 38.63, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 4.13 and a beta of 1.01. The business’s 50-day moving average price is $69.69 and its 200 day moving average price is $68.02.

Fastenal (NASDAQ:FAST) last released its quarterly earnings results on Friday, October 11th. The company reported $0.52 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.51 by $0.01. The business had revenue of $1.91 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $1.90 billion. Fastenal had a net margin of 15.54% and a return on equity of 33.54%. The business’s quarterly revenue was up 3.5% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the previous year, the company earned $0.52 EPS. On average, analysts expect that Fastenal will post 2.04 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Fastenal Announces Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, November 22nd. Stockholders of record on Friday, October 25th will be given a $0.39 dividend. This represents a $1.56 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 2.01%. The ex-dividend date is Friday, October 25th. Fastenal’s dividend payout ratio is presently 77.61%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

FAST has been the topic of a number of recent research reports. Robert W. Baird raised their target price on Fastenal from $67.00 to $80.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a report on Monday. JPMorgan Chase & Co. lifted their target price on Fastenal from $57.00 to $63.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research note on Thursday, October 10th. Jefferies Financial Group decreased their price target on shares of Fastenal from $74.00 to $65.00 and set a “hold” rating for the company in a research note on Thursday, July 11th. Bank of America initiated coverage on Fastenal in a research note on Monday, October 7th. They issued a “buy” rating and a $85.00 price objective on the stock. Finally, Stifel Nicolaus reissued a “buy” rating and set a $86.00 price objective (up from $80.00) on shares of Fastenal in a report on Monday. Seven analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and two have issued a buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company presently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $73.33.

Institutional Trading of Fastenal

A number of institutional investors and hedge funds have recently bought and sold shares of FAST. Legal & General Group Plc boosted its holdings in shares of Fastenal by 3.4% during the 2nd quarter. Legal & General Group Plc now owns 5,909,206 shares of the company’s stock valued at $371,334,000 after acquiring an additional 193,734 shares during the last quarter. Envestnet Asset Management Inc. boosted its holdings in shares of Fastenal by 1.4% during the 2nd quarter. Envestnet Asset Management Inc. now owns 4,665,482 shares of the company’s stock valued at $293,179,000 after acquiring an additional 66,130 shares during the last quarter. Thrivent Financial for Lutherans boosted its holdings in shares of Fastenal by 13.2% during the 2nd quarter. Thrivent Financial for Lutherans now owns 4,420,659 shares of the company’s stock valued at $277,794,000 after acquiring an additional 517,172 shares during the last quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP boosted its holdings in shares of Fastenal by 19.9% during the 2nd quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP now owns 3,837,530 shares of the company’s stock valued at $241,161,000 after acquiring an additional 636,546 shares during the last quarter. Finally, TD Asset Management Inc boosted its holdings in shares of Fastenal by 21.2% during the 1st quarter. TD Asset Management Inc now owns 3,248,853 shares of the company’s stock valued at $250,617,000 after acquiring an additional 569,118 shares during the last quarter. 81.38% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

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.