Fastenal (NASDAQ:FAST) Shares Sold by Louisiana State Employees Retirement System

Louisiana State Employees Retirement System trimmed its position in shares of Fastenal (NASDAQ:FAST) by 2.6% in the third quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm owned 75,900 shares of the company’s stock after selling 2,000 shares during the period. Louisiana State Employees Retirement System’s holdings in Fastenal were worth $5,421,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently bought and sold shares of the company. Central Valley Advisors LLC acquired a new position in Fastenal during the 2nd quarter valued at about $28,000. MCF Advisors LLC boosted its stake in Fastenal by 2,172.2% during the 1st quarter. MCF Advisors LLC now owns 409 shares of the company’s stock valued at $32,000 after purchasing an additional 391 shares during the period. Triad Wealth Partners LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Fastenal in the 2nd quarter worth approximately $32,000. Crewe Advisors LLC lifted its stake in shares of 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 during the period. Finally, Moisand Fitzgerald Tamayo LLC lifted its stake in shares of Fastenal by 1,019.0% in the 3rd quarter. Moisand Fitzgerald Tamayo LLC now owns 470 shares of the company’s stock worth $34,000 after acquiring an additional 428 shares during the period. 81.38% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Insider Activity at Fastenal

In related news, EVP Anthony Paul Broersma sold 680 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, October 16th. The shares were sold at an average price of $77.86, for a total value of $52,944.80. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through the SEC website. In other Fastenal news, CEO Daniel L. Florness sold 45,744 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred 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 completion of the sale, the chief executive officer now owns 286,018 shares in the company, valued at $19,489,266.52. This represents a 0.00 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this hyperlink. Also, 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 transaction of $52,944.80. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last 90 days, insiders sold 179,373 shares of company stock worth $13,029,308. 0.41% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Fastenal Stock Up 0.8 %

FAST stock opened at $75.85 on Friday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.03, a current ratio of 4.40 and a quick ratio of 2.29. The firm has a market capitalization of $43.45 billion, a P/E ratio of 37.74, a P/E/G ratio of 4.48 and a beta of 1.01. Fastenal has a 52-week low of $57.01 and a 52-week high of $79.04. The company’s 50 day simple moving average is $70.91 and its 200-day simple moving average is $68.04.

Fastenal (NASDAQ:FAST) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Friday, October 11th. The company reported $0.52 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $0.51 by $0.01. The business had revenue of $1.91 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $1.90 billion. Fastenal had a net margin of 15.44% and a return on equity of 33.30%. The firm’s quarterly revenue was up 3.5% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm earned $0.52 EPS. As a group, equities research analysts anticipate that Fastenal will post 2.03 EPS for the current year.

Fastenal Announces Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, November 22nd. Investors of record on Friday, October 25th will be given a $0.39 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, October 25th. This represents a $1.56 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 2.06%. Fastenal’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 77.61%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of analysts have recently weighed in on FAST shares. Morgan Stanley upped their price target on shares of Fastenal from $72.00 to $76.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a research note on Monday, October 14th. Robert W. Baird upped their price target on shares of Fastenal from $67.00 to $80.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research note on Monday, October 14th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. upped their price target on shares of Fastenal from $57.00 to $63.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research note on Thursday, October 10th. Stephens upped their price target on shares of Fastenal from $56.00 to $75.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a research note on Monday, October 14th. Finally, Stifel Nicolaus reaffirmed a “buy” rating and issued a $86.00 price target (up from $80.00) on shares of Fastenal in a research note on Monday, October 14th. Seven analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and two have assigned a buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, Fastenal presently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $73.33.

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.