Fastenal (NASDAQ:FAST) Stock Holdings Lowered by Cullinan Associates Inc.

Cullinan Associates Inc. trimmed its stake in Fastenal (NASDAQ:FAST) by 2.1% in the fourth quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor owned 53,376 shares of the company’s stock after selling 1,170 shares during the quarter. Cullinan Associates Inc.’s holdings in Fastenal were worth $3,838,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC).

A number of other institutional investors have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the business. Aaron Wealth Advisors LLC bought a new stake in shares of Fastenal in the 3rd quarter valued at $310,000. Comgest Global Investors S.A.S. grew its position in shares of Fastenal by 73.0% during the 3rd quarter. Comgest Global Investors S.A.S. now owns 87,081 shares of the company’s stock worth $6,219,000 after purchasing an additional 36,742 shares in the last quarter. PNC Financial Services Group Inc. grew its holdings in shares of Fastenal by 1.8% during the 3rd quarter. PNC Financial Services Group Inc. now owns 369,267 shares of the company’s stock worth $26,373,000 after purchasing an additional 6,488 shares in the last quarter. Matrix Trust Co bought a new position in Fastenal in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $1,756,000. Finally, Franklin Resources Inc. increased its position in Fastenal by 3.8% during the 3rd quarter. Franklin Resources Inc. now owns 4,572,999 shares of the company’s stock worth $350,703,000 after purchasing an additional 165,423 shares in the last quarter. 81.38% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several analysts have recently commented on FAST shares. JPMorgan Chase & Co. raised their price objective on shares of Fastenal from $57.00 to $63.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research report on Thursday, October 10th. Robert W. Baird increased their target price on shares of Fastenal from $67.00 to $80.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research report on Monday, October 14th. Stephens raised their price target on shares of Fastenal from $56.00 to $75.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a report on Monday, October 14th. Hsbc Global Res cut Fastenal from a “hold” rating to a “moderate sell” rating in a report on Wednesday, December 11th. Finally, Morgan Stanley boosted 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. Two research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, eight have assigned a hold rating and one has given a buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, Fastenal currently has an average rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $76.91.

Insider Activity

In other Fastenal news, CEO Daniel L. Florness sold 31,818 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated 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 completion of the sale, the chief executive officer now directly owns 286,018 shares in the company, valued at approximately $24,168,521. This trade represents a 10.01 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available through this hyperlink. Also, Director Daniel L. Johnson sold 8,474 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, November 13th. The shares were sold at an average price of $83.36, for a total transaction of $706,392.64. Following the transaction, the director now directly owns 10,595 shares in the company, valued at $883,199.20. The trade was a 44.44 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold 63,772 shares of company stock worth $5,365,455 over the last ninety days. Corporate insiders own 0.41% of the company’s stock.

Fastenal Stock Up 0.7 %

Fastenal stock opened at $73.72 on Tuesday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.03, a quick ratio of 2.28 and a current ratio of 4.67. The company has a market capitalization of $42.23 billion, a PE ratio of 36.68, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 3.48 and a beta of 1.02. The firm has a 50 day moving average price of $76.43 and a 200 day moving average price of $73.78. Fastenal has a fifty-two week low of $61.36 and a fifty-two week high of $84.88.

Fastenal (NASDAQ:FAST) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Friday, January 17th. The company reported $0.46 earnings per share for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.48 by ($0.02). The company had revenue of $1.82 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $1.84 billion. Fastenal had a net margin of 15.25% and a return on equity of 32.55%. Fastenal’s revenue was up 3.7% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period last year, the firm earned $0.46 earnings per share. Research analysts expect that Fastenal will post 2.15 earnings per share for the current year.

Fastenal Increases Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, February 28th. Shareholders of record on Friday, January 31st will be paid a dividend of $0.43 per share. This represents a $1.72 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 2.33%. 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 currently 85.57%.

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.