Morgan Stanley Initiates Coverage on Fastenal (NASDAQ:FAST)

Morgan Stanley started coverage on shares of Fastenal (NASDAQ:FAST) in a research report sent to investors on Friday morning, Marketbeat Ratings reports. The firm issued an equal weight rating and a $72.00 target price on the stock.

Several other research analysts have also recently commented on the company. Stifel Nicolaus reaffirmed a buy rating and issued a $80.00 target price (down from $85.00) on shares of Fastenal in a research report on Monday, July 15th. Jefferies Financial Group reduced their price objective on shares of Fastenal from $74.00 to $65.00 and set a hold rating for the company in a report on Thursday, July 11th. Finally, Stephens reissued an equal weight rating and issued a $56.00 target price on shares of Fastenal in a research note on Monday, July 15th. Seven research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and one has assigned a buy rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock presently has a consensus rating of Hold and a consensus price target of $67.43.

Fastenal Stock Performance

NASDAQ:FAST opened at $65.89 on Friday. The firm’s 50-day moving average is $66.71 and its 200-day moving average is $68.67. The company has a market cap of $37.73 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 32.78, a PEG ratio of 3.72 and a beta of 1.01. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.04, a quick ratio of 2.29 and a current ratio of 4.39. Fastenal has a 52-week low of $53.83 and a 52-week high of $79.04.

Fastenal (NASDAQ:FAST) last posted 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 return on equity of 33.54% and a net margin of 15.54%. The firm had revenue of $1.92 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $1.91 billion. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm posted $0.52 EPS. The company’s revenue for the quarter was up 1.8% on a year-over-year basis. Equities research analysts anticipate that Fastenal will post 2.04 earnings per share for the current year.

Fastenal Dividend Announcement

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

Insider Transactions at Fastenal

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

Institutional Trading of Fastenal

Large investors have recently made changes to their positions in the business. Cim LLC bought a new stake in shares of Fastenal during the second quarter valued at approximately $1,777,000. Sanctuary Advisors LLC bought a new position in Fastenal in the 2nd quarter valued at $6,409,000. Clear Rock Advisors LLC boosted its position in Fastenal by 1.5% in the 2nd quarter. Clear Rock Advisors LLC now owns 43,149 shares of the company’s stock valued at $2,711,000 after buying an additional 650 shares during the last quarter. KPP Advisory Services LLC increased its stake in shares of Fastenal by 11.6% in the 2nd quarter. KPP Advisory Services LLC now owns 6,993 shares of the company’s stock valued at $439,000 after buying an additional 725 shares during the period. Finally, Cetera Investment Advisers raised its position in shares of Fastenal by 5.0% during the second quarter. Cetera Investment Advisers now owns 138,706 shares of the company’s stock worth $8,716,000 after acquiring an additional 6,660 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors own 81.38% of the company’s stock.

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.