Fastenal (NASDAQ:FAST) Shares Sold by Stock Yards Bank & Trust Co.

Stock Yards Bank & Trust Co. lowered its holdings in Fastenal (NASDAQ:FAST) by 20.5% during the fourth quarter, Holdings Channel reports. The fund owned 11,705 shares of the company’s stock after selling 3,011 shares during the quarter. Stock Yards Bank & Trust Co.’s holdings in Fastenal were worth $758,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC).

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently made changes to their positions in the business. Hartford Financial Management Inc. increased its stake in shares of Fastenal by 46.9% in the fourth quarter. Hartford Financial Management Inc. now owns 479 shares of the company’s stock worth $31,000 after acquiring an additional 153 shares during the period. Empirical Asset Management LLC increased its stake in shares of Fastenal by 2.4% in the fourth quarter. Empirical Asset Management LLC now owns 7,212 shares of the company’s stock worth $467,000 after acquiring an additional 171 shares during the period. Berkshire Bank increased its stake in shares of Fastenal by 3.1% in the third quarter. Berkshire Bank now owns 5,777 shares of the company’s stock worth $316,000 after acquiring an additional 174 shares during the period. OmniStar Financial Group Inc. increased its stake in shares of Fastenal by 1.1% in the third quarter. OmniStar Financial Group Inc. now owns 15,960 shares of the company’s stock worth $873,000 after acquiring an additional 174 shares during the period. Finally, Koshinski Asset Management Inc. increased its stake in shares of Fastenal by 3.8% in the fourth quarter. Koshinski Asset Management Inc. now owns 5,075 shares of the company’s stock worth $329,000 after acquiring an additional 186 shares during the period. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 81.38% of the company’s stock.

Fastenal Stock Up 0.1 %

Shares of NASDAQ FAST opened at $67.51 on Wednesday. The company’s 50-day simple moving average is $73.54 and its 200-day simple moving average is $66.63. Fastenal has a 52-week low of $52.28 and a 52-week high of $79.04. The firm has a market cap of $38.65 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 33.42, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 3.53 and a beta of 1.05. The company has a quick ratio of 2.49, a current ratio of 4.83 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.06.

Fastenal (NASDAQ:FAST) last announced its earnings results on Thursday, April 11th. The company reported $0.52 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $0.53 by ($0.01). Fastenal had a net margin of 15.68% and a return on equity of 33.98%. The company had revenue of $1.90 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $1.91 billion. During the same quarter last year, the business earned $0.52 EPS. The firm’s revenue for the quarter was up 1.9% compared to the same quarter last year. Equities analysts predict that Fastenal will post 2.12 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Fastenal Announces Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, May 23rd. Stockholders of record on Thursday, April 25th will be paid a $0.39 dividend. This represents a $1.56 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 2.31%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Wednesday, April 24th. Fastenal’s dividend payout ratio is currently 77.23%.

Insider Transactions at Fastenal

In other Fastenal news, Director Daniel L. Johnson purchased 3,350 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, April 17th. The shares were purchased at an average cost of $68.38 per share, with a total value of $229,073.00. Following the completion of the purchase, the director now owns 10,595 shares in the company, valued at approximately $724,486.10. The acquisition was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is accessible through the SEC website. In other Fastenal news, EVP Anthony Paul Broersma sold 5,586 shares of Fastenal stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, February 6th. The shares were sold at an average price of $69.34, for a total transaction of $387,333.24. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Also, Director Daniel L. Johnson bought 3,350 shares of Fastenal stock in a transaction on Wednesday, April 17th. The shares were purchased at an average cost of $68.38 per share, for a total transaction of $229,073.00. Following the completion of the purchase, the director now directly owns 10,595 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $724,486.10. The disclosure for this purchase can be found here. Over the last three months, insiders have sold 48,050 shares of company stock valued at $3,411,049. Corporate insiders own 0.41% of the company’s stock.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several analysts recently commented on FAST shares. Robert W. Baird dropped their price target on shares of Fastenal from $77.00 to $71.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a research report on Friday, April 12th. Stifel Nicolaus raised their price target on shares of Fastenal from $75.00 to $85.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Monday, March 18th. Loop Capital dropped their price target on shares of Fastenal from $71.00 to $66.00 and set a “hold” rating on the stock in a research report on Monday, April 15th. Finally, HSBC raised their price target on shares of Fastenal from $59.00 to $64.00 and gave the company a “hold” rating in a research report on Monday, April 15th. Five investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and one has issued a buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, the company currently has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $67.67.

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.