Fastenal (NASDAQ:FAST) Sees Large Increase in Short Interest

Fastenal (NASDAQ:FAST) was the target of a large growth in short interest during the month of December. As of December 31st, there was short interest totalling 12,050,000 shares, a growth of 6.5% from the December 15th total of 11,310,000 shares. Based on an average daily volume of 2,810,000 shares, the short-interest ratio is currently 4.3 days. Currently, 2.1% of the shares of the company are short sold.

Fastenal Stock Performance

Shares of NASDAQ:FAST opened at $76.08 on Tuesday. Fastenal has a 1 year low of $61.36 and a 1 year high of $84.88. The stock has a market capitalization of $43.59 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 37.85, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 3.94 and a beta of 1.02. 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 company’s 50 day simple moving average is $77.92 and its 200 day simple moving average is $73.07.

Fastenal (NASDAQ:FAST) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Friday, January 17th. The company reported $0.46 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $0.48 by ($0.02). Fastenal had a net margin of 15.44% and a return on equity of 33.30%. The business had revenue of $1.82 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $1,842,560.16 billion. During the same quarter in the previous year, the business posted $0.46 EPS. The company’s revenue for the quarter was up 3.7% on a year-over-year basis. As a group, research analysts predict that Fastenal will post 2.03 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Fastenal Increases Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, February 28th. Investors of record on Friday, January 31st will be paid a $0.43 dividend. This is an increase from Fastenal’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.39. The ex-dividend date is Friday, January 31st. This represents a $1.72 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.26%. Fastenal’s dividend payout ratio is presently 85.57%.

Insider Activity at Fastenal

In related news, CEO Daniel L. Florness sold 31,818 shares of the stock in a transaction on Monday, November 11th. The stock was sold at an average price of $84.50, for a total value of $2,688,621.00. Following the sale, the chief executive officer now owns 286,018 shares in the company, valued at approximately $24,168,521. This represents a 10.01 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through the SEC website. Also, Director Rita J. Heise sold 10,888 shares of Fastenal stock in a transaction on Wednesday, October 30th. The stock was sold at an average price of $77.67, for a total transaction of $845,670.96. Following the transaction, the director now directly owns 20,000 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $1,553,400. This trade represents a 35.25 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last ninety days, insiders sold 74,660 shares of company stock worth $6,211,126. Insiders own 0.41% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Fastenal

Several hedge funds have recently modified their holdings of FAST. King Luther Capital Management Corp boosted its stake in shares of Fastenal by 1.6% during the third quarter. King Luther Capital Management Corp now owns 8,664 shares of the company’s stock valued at $619,000 after purchasing an additional 136 shares in the last quarter. Verdence Capital Advisors LLC boosted its holdings in Fastenal by 1.9% in the third quarter. Verdence Capital Advisors LLC now owns 7,628 shares of the company’s stock valued at $545,000 after acquiring an additional 142 shares during the last quarter. HB Wealth Management LLC raised its holdings in Fastenal by 1.2% during the 4th quarter. HB Wealth Management LLC now owns 11,674 shares of the company’s stock worth $840,000 after purchasing an additional 142 shares during the last quarter. Thurston Springer Miller Herd & Titak Inc. boosted its stake in shares of Fastenal by 5.8% in the 3rd quarter. Thurston Springer Miller Herd & Titak Inc. now owns 2,607 shares of the company’s stock valued at $186,000 after purchasing an additional 143 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Compass Ion Advisors LLC lifted its holdings in Fastenal by 1.5% in the third quarter. Compass Ion Advisors LLC now owns 9,927 shares of the company’s stock valued at $709,000 after buying an additional 146 shares during the period. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 81.38% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several research firms have recently commented on FAST. Robert W. Baird upped their target price on Fastenal from $67.00 to $80.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research report on Monday, October 14th. Bank of America assumed coverage on shares of Fastenal in a research report on Monday, October 7th. They issued a “buy” rating and a $85.00 target price for the company. Wolfe Research upped their price target on shares of Fastenal from $74.00 to $76.00 and gave the company an “underweight” rating in a research note on Thursday, January 16th. Jefferies Financial Group lifted their price objective on shares of Fastenal from $74.00 to $85.00 and gave the stock a “hold” rating in a research note on Friday, December 6th. Finally, Stephens increased their target price on shares of Fastenal from $56.00 to $75.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a research report on Monday, October 14th. Two research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, eight have assigned a hold rating and one has assigned a buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, Fastenal has an average rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $77.27.

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.