Commonwealth Retirement Investments LLC Purchases 1,193 Shares of Fastenal (NASDAQ:FAST)

Commonwealth Retirement Investments LLC lifted its position in Fastenal (NASDAQ:FAST) by 5.8% in the 2nd quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund owned 21,626 shares of the company’s stock after acquiring an additional 1,193 shares during the quarter. Commonwealth Retirement Investments LLC’s holdings in Fastenal were worth $1,359,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other large investors have also recently made changes to their positions in FAST. MCF Advisors LLC grew its position in Fastenal by 2,172.2% in the 1st quarter. MCF Advisors LLC now owns 409 shares of the company’s stock valued at $32,000 after acquiring an additional 391 shares during the last quarter. Central Valley Advisors LLC purchased a new position in Fastenal in the 2nd quarter worth about $28,000. LRI Investments LLC bought a new stake in Fastenal during the 1st quarter valued at about $39,000. Triad Wealth Partners LLC purchased a new stake in Fastenal in the 2nd quarter valued at about $32,000. Finally, Crewe Advisors LLC grew its stake in Fastenal by 528.4% in the 2nd quarter. Crewe Advisors LLC now owns 509 shares of the company’s stock worth $32,000 after acquiring an additional 428 shares in the last quarter. 81.38% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several analysts have recently weighed in on the stock. Morgan Stanley initiated coverage on shares of Fastenal in a research note on Friday. They set an “equal weight” rating and a $72.00 price target for the company. Stephens reiterated an “equal weight” rating and issued a $56.00 target price on shares of Fastenal in a report on Monday, July 15th. Jefferies Financial Group cut their price target on Fastenal from $74.00 to $65.00 and set a “hold” rating on the stock in a research note on Thursday, July 11th. Finally, Stifel Nicolaus restated a “buy” rating and issued a $80.00 price objective (down from $85.00) on shares of Fastenal in a report on Monday, July 15th. Seven investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and one has given a buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, the company presently has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $67.43.

Fastenal Trading Up 1.1 %

Shares of NASDAQ FAST opened at $65.89 on Friday. Fastenal has a 1-year low of $53.83 and a 1-year high of $79.04. The business has a fifty day moving average price of $66.71 and a 200 day moving average price of $68.67. The stock has a market capitalization of $37.73 billion, a P/E ratio of 32.78, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 3.72 and a beta of 1.01. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.04, a current ratio of 4.39 and a quick ratio of 2.29.

Fastenal (NASDAQ:FAST) last released its quarterly earnings results on Friday, July 12th. The company reported $0.51 EPS for the quarter, meeting the consensus estimate of $0.51. Fastenal had a net margin of 15.54% and a return on equity of 33.54%. The business had revenue of $1.92 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $1.91 billion. During the same period in the prior year, the firm posted $0.52 earnings per share. The company’s quarterly revenue was up 1.8% on a year-over-year basis. Equities research analysts expect that Fastenal will post 2.04 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Fastenal Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, August 23rd. Shareholders of record on Friday, July 26th were issued a $0.39 dividend. This represents a $1.56 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.37%. The ex-dividend date was Friday, July 26th. Fastenal’s dividend payout ratio is presently 77.61%.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other news, CEO Daniel L. Florness sold 45,744 shares of Fastenal stock in a transaction on Wednesday, August 21st. The shares were sold at an average price of $68.14, for a total transaction of $3,116,996.16. Following the completion of the sale, the chief executive officer now directly owns 286,018 shares in the company, valued at $19,489,266.52. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this link. In related news, CEO Daniel L. Florness sold 45,744 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, August 21st. The stock was sold at an average price of $68.14, for a total value of $3,116,996.16. Following the sale, the chief executive officer now owns 286,018 shares in the company, valued at $19,489,266.52. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available through this link. Also, Director Hsenghung Sam Hsu purchased 500 shares of Fastenal stock in a transaction on Monday, June 10th. The shares were acquired at an average cost of $63.28 per share, with a total value of $31,640.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the director now directly owns 3,500 shares in the company, valued at approximately $221,480. The disclosure for this purchase can be found here. Corporate insiders own 0.41% of the company’s stock.

Fastenal 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.