Fastenal (NASDAQ:FAST) CEO Sells $3,484,000.00 in Stock

Fastenal (NASDAQ:FAST) CEO Daniel L. Florness sold 50,000 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Thursday, September 12th. The stock was sold at an average price of $69.68, for a total value of $3,484,000.00. Following the completion of the sale, the chief executive officer now directly owns 286,018 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $19,929,734.24. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through the SEC website.

Fastenal Stock Performance

Shares of Fastenal stock opened at $70.47 on Thursday. The company has a current ratio of 4.39, a quick ratio of 2.29 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.04. The firm has a market capitalization of $40.35 billion, a P/E ratio of 35.06, a P/E/G ratio of 3.78 and a beta of 1.01. The business has a fifty day simple moving average of $67.80 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $68.50. Fastenal has a 12 month low of $53.83 and a 12 month high of $79.04.

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

Fastenal Announces Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, August 23rd. Stockholders of record on Friday, July 26th were given a $0.39 dividend. This represents a $1.56 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 2.21%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, July 26th. Fastenal’s dividend payout ratio is presently 77.61%.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Fastenal

Several large investors have recently modified their holdings of the stock. Baird Financial Group Inc. raised its position in shares of Fastenal by 15.2% in the 4th quarter. Baird Financial Group Inc. now owns 7,928,209 shares of the company’s stock worth $513,510,000 after purchasing an additional 1,043,529 shares during the last quarter. Norges Bank purchased a new position in shares of Fastenal in the 4th quarter worth about $405,513,000. Legal & General Group Plc increased its holdings in Fastenal by 3.4% in the 2nd quarter. Legal & General Group Plc now owns 5,909,206 shares of the company’s stock worth $371,334,000 after buying an additional 193,734 shares in the last quarter. Envestnet Asset Management Inc. increased its holdings in Fastenal by 2.3% in the 4th quarter. Envestnet Asset Management Inc. now owns 4,800,534 shares of the company’s stock worth $310,931,000 after buying an additional 109,028 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Thrivent Financial for Lutherans increased its holdings in Fastenal by 13.2% in the 2nd quarter. Thrivent Financial for Lutherans now owns 4,420,659 shares of the company’s stock worth $277,794,000 after buying an additional 517,172 shares in the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 81.38% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of brokerages recently commented on FAST. Morgan Stanley began coverage on Fastenal in a research note on Friday, September 6th. They issued an “equal weight” rating and a $72.00 price target for the company. Stephens reaffirmed an “equal weight” rating and issued a $56.00 price target on shares of Fastenal in a research note on Monday, July 15th. Stifel Nicolaus reaffirmed a “buy” rating and issued a $80.00 price target (down previously from $85.00) on shares of Fastenal in a research note on Monday, July 15th. Finally, Jefferies Financial Group dropped their price target on Fastenal from $74.00 to $65.00 and set a “hold” rating for the company in a research note on Thursday, July 11th. Seven research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and one has issued a buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company presently has an average rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $67.43.

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.