GAMMA Investing LLC Acquires New Shares in Fastenal (NASDAQ:FAST)

GAMMA Investing LLC bought a new position in shares of Fastenal (NASDAQ:FAST) during the 4th quarter, HoldingsChannel reports. The institutional investor bought 7,151 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $488,000.

Other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Hartford Financial Management Inc. lifted its holdings in Fastenal by 46.9% during the 4th quarter. Hartford Financial Management Inc. now owns 479 shares of the company’s stock worth $31,000 after buying an additional 153 shares during the period. Harel Insurance Investments & Financial Services Ltd. bought a new position in Fastenal during the fourth quarter worth $35,000. Criterion Capital Advisors LLC bought a new stake in Fastenal in the 4th quarter valued at about $43,000. Pacific Center for Financial Services bought a new stake in shares of Fastenal during the third quarter valued at approximately $66,000. Finally, Livforsakringsbolaget Skandia Omsesidigt raised its holdings in Fastenal by 77.7% during the fourth quarter. Livforsakringsbolaget Skandia Omsesidigt now owns 1,084 shares of the company’s stock worth $70,000 after buying an additional 474 shares during the last quarter. 81.38% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Insider Buying and Selling at Fastenal

In other Fastenal news, insider William Joseph Drazkowski sold 11,968 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Thursday, January 25th. The shares were sold at an average price of $69.10, for a total transaction of $826,988.80. Following the completion of the sale, the insider now directly owns 5,997 shares in the company, valued at $414,392.70. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is accessible through this link. In other news, insider William Joseph Drazkowski sold 11,968 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, January 25th. The stock was sold at an average price of $69.10, for a total transaction of $826,988.80. Following the transaction, the insider now directly owns 5,997 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $414,392.70. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this link. Also, EVP Anthony Paul Broersma sold 5,586 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, February 6th. The shares were sold at an average price of $69.34, for a total value of $387,333.24. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold a total of 48,050 shares of company stock worth $3,411,049 over the last three months. Company insiders own 0.41% of the company’s stock.

Fastenal Price Performance

Fastenal stock traded up $0.80 during midday trading on Wednesday, hitting $67.92. 1,295,790 shares of the company’s stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 4,008,369. Fastenal has a 52-week low of $52.28 and a 52-week high of $79.04. The stock has a 50-day moving average price of $73.54 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $66.63. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.06, a quick ratio of 2.49 and a current ratio of 4.83. The company has a market cap of $38.89 billion, a P/E ratio of 33.42, a PEG ratio of 3.53 and a beta of 1.05.

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

Fastenal Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, May 23rd. Shareholders of record on Thursday, April 25th will be given a dividend of $0.39 per share. The ex-dividend date is Wednesday, April 24th. This represents a $1.56 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.30%. Fastenal’s payout ratio is 77.23%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of research analysts have recently weighed in on FAST shares. Loop Capital dropped their target price on Fastenal from $71.00 to $66.00 and set a “hold” rating on the stock in a report on Monday, April 15th. Stifel Nicolaus boosted their price target on shares of Fastenal from $75.00 to $85.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Monday, March 18th. HSBC lifted their price objective on Fastenal from $59.00 to $64.00 and gave the stock a “hold” rating in a report on Monday, April 15th. Finally, Robert W. Baird decreased their price objective on Fastenal from $77.00 to $71.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a report on Friday, April 12th. Five research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and one has issued a buy rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock has an average rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $67.67.

Fastenal 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.