Drystone LLC Buys Shares of 5,000 Fastenal (NASDAQ:FAST)

Drystone LLC purchased a new stake in Fastenal (NASDAQ:FAST) in the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the SEC. The fund purchased 5,000 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $360,000. Fastenal makes up 0.4% of Drystone LLC’s investment portfolio, making the stock its 17th biggest holding.

Several other hedge funds have also recently modified their holdings of the business. State Street Corp raised its holdings in Fastenal by 5.1% in the third quarter. State Street Corp now owns 27,989,485 shares of the company’s stock worth $1,999,009,000 after purchasing an additional 1,346,863 shares in the last quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC grew its position in shares of Fastenal by 5.6% in the 3rd quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 16,683,751 shares of the company’s stock worth $1,188,251,000 after buying an additional 880,372 shares during the last quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. raised its stake in shares of Fastenal by 3.2% during the 3rd quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. now owns 19,878,045 shares of the company’s stock worth $1,419,690,000 after acquiring an additional 608,596 shares in the last quarter. Benjamin Edwards Inc. lifted its position in Fastenal by 1,789.1% during the third quarter. Benjamin Edwards Inc. now owns 535,723 shares of the company’s stock valued at $38,262,000 after acquiring an additional 507,364 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Caisse DE Depot ET Placement DU Quebec boosted its stake in Fastenal by 59.3% in the third quarter. Caisse DE Depot ET Placement DU Quebec now owns 928,377 shares of the company’s stock valued at $66,305,000 after acquiring an additional 345,537 shares in the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 81.38% of the company’s stock.

Fastenal Stock Performance

FAST opened at $74.08 on Thursday. The company has a current ratio of 4.67, a quick ratio of 2.28 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.03. Fastenal has a 12-month low of $61.36 and a 12-month high of $84.88. The firm has a 50 day moving average of $76.94 and a two-hundred day moving average of $73.67. The firm has a market capitalization of $42.44 billion, a PE ratio of 36.86, a P/E/G ratio of 3.60 and a beta of 1.02.

Fastenal (NASDAQ:FAST) last issued its 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 return on equity of 32.55% and a net margin of 15.25%. The business had revenue of $1.82 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $1.84 billion. During the same period last year, the business earned $0.46 EPS. The company’s revenue for the quarter was up 3.7% on a year-over-year basis. On average, analysts anticipate that Fastenal will post 2.15 EPS for the current year.

Fastenal Increases Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, February 28th. Stockholders of record on Friday, January 31st will be issued a $0.43 dividend. This represents a $1.72 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 2.32%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, January 31st. This is a boost from Fastenal’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.39. Fastenal’s payout ratio is 77.61%.

Insider Transactions at Fastenal

In related news, VP Charles S. Miller sold 23,480 shares of Fastenal stock in a transaction on Wednesday, November 13th. The shares were sold at an average price of $83.92, for a total value of $1,970,441.60. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available at this link. Also, CEO Daniel L. Florness sold 31,818 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Monday, November 11th. The stock was sold at an average price of $84.50, for a total transaction of $2,688,621.00. Following the transaction, the chief executive officer now owns 286,018 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $24,168,521. This represents a 10.01 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold 63,772 shares of company stock worth $5,365,455 over the last quarter. 0.41% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of brokerages have recently issued reports on FAST. Wolfe Research upped their price target on Fastenal from $74.00 to $76.00 and gave the stock an “underweight” rating in a research report on Thursday, January 16th. Bank of America assumed coverage on Fastenal in a research report on Monday, October 7th. They set a “buy” rating and a $85.00 target price on the stock. JPMorgan Chase & Co. increased their price target on Fastenal from $57.00 to $63.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research note on Thursday, October 10th. Morgan Stanley boosted their price target on Fastenal from $72.00 to $76.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a research note on Monday, October 14th. Finally, Stephens increased their price objective on shares of Fastenal from $56.00 to $75.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a research report on Monday, October 14th. Two analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, eight have given a hold rating and one has issued a buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the company presently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $76.91.

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.