Principle Wealth Partners LLC Takes $214,000 Position in Fastenal (NASDAQ:FAST)

Principle Wealth Partners LLC acquired a new position in shares of Fastenal (NASDAQ:FAST) in the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm acquired 3,300 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $214,000.

A number of other large investors have also bought and sold shares of the stock. Hartford Financial Management Inc. raised its stake 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 stake in shares of Fastenal during the 4th quarter worth $35,000. Criterion Capital Advisors LLC bought a new position in Fastenal during the fourth quarter valued at about $43,000. Pacific Center for Financial Services purchased a new stake in Fastenal during the third quarter worth about $66,000. Finally, Livforsakringsbolaget Skandia Omsesidigt raised its holdings in shares of Fastenal by 77.7% in the 4th quarter. Livforsakringsbolaget Skandia Omsesidigt now owns 1,084 shares of the company’s stock worth $70,000 after purchasing an additional 474 shares during the period. 81.38% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, EVP Anthony Paul Broersma sold 5,586 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, February 6th. The stock was sold at an average price of $69.34, for a total value of $387,333.24. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available through the SEC website. In related news, Director Daniel L. Johnson purchased 3,350 shares of Fastenal stock in a transaction on Wednesday, April 17th. The stock was acquired at an average price of $68.38 per share, for a total transaction of $229,073.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the director now directly owns 10,595 shares in the company, valued at approximately $724,486.10. The purchase was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available at the SEC website. Also, EVP Anthony Paul Broersma sold 5,586 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated 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 have sold a total of 36,082 shares of company stock worth $2,584,060 in the last quarter. Corporate insiders own 0.41% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of brokerages have weighed in on FAST. Robert W. Baird cut their target price on shares of Fastenal from $77.00 to $71.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a research report on Friday, April 12th. Loop Capital reduced their target price on Fastenal from $71.00 to $66.00 and set a “hold” rating for the company in a research report on Monday, April 15th. Stifel Nicolaus raised their price objective 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. Finally, HSBC increased their target price on shares of Fastenal from $59.00 to $64.00 and gave the company a “hold” rating in a report on Monday, April 15th. 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.com, Fastenal has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $67.67.

Fastenal Stock Up 0.5 %

NASDAQ:FAST opened at $68.48 on Tuesday. Fastenal has a 1-year low of $52.85 and a 1-year high of $79.04. The company has a market capitalization of $39.21 billion, a PE ratio of 33.90, a P/E/G ratio of 3.57 and a beta of 1.05. The firm’s 50-day moving average price is $73.37 and its 200-day moving average price is $66.94. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.06, a current ratio of 4.83 and a quick ratio of 2.49.

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

Fastenal Announces Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, May 23rd. Stockholders of record on Thursday, April 25th will be issued a dividend of $0.39 per share. The ex-dividend date is Wednesday, April 24th. This represents a $1.56 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 2.28%. Fastenal’s payout ratio is presently 77.23%.

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.