Fastenal (NASDAQ:FAST) Shares Sold by Wealth Alliance

Wealth Alliance trimmed its holdings in Fastenal (NASDAQ:FAST) by 10.8% during the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund owned 5,318 shares of the company’s stock after selling 646 shares during the period. Wealth Alliance’s holdings in Fastenal were worth $382,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other hedge funds have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the business. Ashton Thomas Securities LLC acquired a new position in shares of Fastenal in the 3rd quarter valued at about $25,000. Knuff & Co LLC acquired a new position in Fastenal during the 3rd quarter worth approximately $27,000. First Personal Financial Services acquired a new position in Fastenal during the 3rd quarter worth approximately $36,000. MCF Advisors LLC lifted its position in Fastenal by 54.1% during the 3rd quarter. MCF Advisors LLC now owns 635 shares of the company’s stock worth $45,000 after acquiring an additional 223 shares in the last quarter. Finally, R Squared Ltd acquired a new position in Fastenal during the 4th quarter worth approximately $68,000. 81.38% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several equities analysts recently commented on the company. UBS Group assumed coverage on Fastenal in a research report on Wednesday, November 13th. They set a “neutral” rating and a $88.00 price target on the stock. Stifel Nicolaus dropped their price objective on Fastenal from $86.00 to $82.00 and set a “hold” rating on the stock in a report on Tuesday, January 21st. Jefferies Financial Group lifted their price objective on Fastenal from $74.00 to $85.00 and gave the stock a “hold” rating in a report on Friday, December 6th. Wolfe Research upped their price target on Fastenal from $74.00 to $76.00 and gave the company an “underweight” rating in a research report on Thursday, January 16th. Finally, HSBC lowered Fastenal from a “hold” rating to a “reduce” rating and set a $70.00 price target on the stock. in a research report on Wednesday, December 11th. Two investment analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, eight have issued a hold rating and one has issued a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the company currently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $76.91.

Fastenal Price Performance

Shares of NASDAQ FAST opened at $74.78 on Friday. Fastenal has a 1-year low of $61.36 and a 1-year high of $84.88. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.03, a current ratio of 4.67 and a quick ratio of 2.28. The business’s fifty day moving average price is $74.29 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $74.24. The firm has a market capitalization of $42.88 billion, a PE ratio of 37.20, 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 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 company had revenue of $1.82 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $1.84 billion. During the same period in the prior year, the business earned $0.46 earnings per share. Fastenal’s quarterly revenue was up 3.7% on a year-over-year basis. On average, research analysts expect that Fastenal will post 2.15 EPS for the current year.

Fastenal Increases Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, February 28th. Stockholders of record on Friday, January 31st will be paid a $0.43 dividend. This is a boost from Fastenal’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.39. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, January 31st. This represents a $1.72 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 2.30%. Fastenal’s dividend payout ratio is presently 85.57%.

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.