Fastenal (NASDAQ:FAST) CFO Holden Lewis Sells 30,000 Shares

Fastenal (NASDAQ:FAST) CFO Holden Lewis sold 30,000 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, October 14th. The shares were sold at an average price of $76.52, for a total value of $2,295,600.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief financial officer now directly owns 9,881 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $756,094.12. This represents a 0.00 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this link.

Fastenal Stock Performance

Shares of NASDAQ:FAST traded up $0.70 during trading on Wednesday, hitting $77.61. 1,367,318 shares of the company were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 3,365,848. The company has a market cap of $44.44 billion, a PE ratio of 38.26, a P/E/G ratio of 4.13 and a beta of 1.01. The stock has a 50 day moving average of $69.21 and a 200 day moving average of $67.88. Fastenal has a 52-week low of $56.41 and a 52-week high of $79.04. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.04, a current ratio of 4.39 and a quick ratio of 2.29.

Fastenal (NASDAQ:FAST) last posted its earnings results on Friday, October 11th. The company reported $0.52 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $0.51 by $0.01. Fastenal had a return on equity of 33.54% and a net margin of 15.54%. The firm had revenue of $1.91 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $1.90 billion. During the same quarter in the prior year, the business posted $0.52 earnings per share. The business’s quarterly revenue was up 3.5% on a year-over-year basis. As a group, equities research analysts predict that Fastenal will post 2.04 EPS for the current year.

Fastenal Announces Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, November 22nd. Investors of record on Friday, October 25th will be given a $0.39 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, October 25th. This represents a $1.56 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 2.01%. Fastenal’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 77.61%.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Fastenal

A number of institutional investors and hedge funds have recently made changes to their positions in FAST. Thurston Springer Miller Herd & Titak Inc. raised its position in Fastenal by 5.8% during the third quarter. Thurston Springer Miller Herd & Titak Inc. now owns 2,607 shares of the company’s stock valued at $186,000 after purchasing an additional 143 shares in the last quarter. Penobscot Investment Management Company Inc. grew its stake in shares of Fastenal by 1.1% during the first quarter. Penobscot Investment Management Company Inc. now owns 13,350 shares of the company’s stock valued at $1,030,000 after buying an additional 150 shares during the last quarter. Sara Bay Financial grew its stake in shares of Fastenal by 1.3% during the second quarter. Sara Bay Financial now owns 11,872 shares of the company’s stock valued at $746,000 after buying an additional 155 shares during the last quarter. Trueblood Wealth Management LLC grew its stake in shares of Fastenal by 1.4% during the second quarter. Trueblood Wealth Management LLC now owns 11,314 shares of the company’s stock valued at $711,000 after buying an additional 156 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Team Hewins LLC grew its stake in shares of Fastenal by 4.8% during the first quarter. Team Hewins LLC now owns 3,404 shares of the company’s stock valued at $263,000 after buying an additional 157 shares during the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 81.38% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several equities analysts have recently issued reports on the company. Morgan Stanley upped their target price on Fastenal from $72.00 to $76.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a report on Monday. Jefferies Financial Group reduced their price objective on Fastenal from $74.00 to $65.00 and set a “hold” rating for the company in a report on Thursday, July 11th. Robert W. Baird increased their price objective on Fastenal from $67.00 to $80.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a report on Monday. JPMorgan Chase & Co. increased their price objective on Fastenal from $57.00 to $63.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a report on Thursday, October 10th. Finally, Stifel Nicolaus reissued a “buy” rating and set a $86.00 price objective (up from $80.00) on shares of Fastenal in a report on Monday. Seven research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and two have issued a buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, Fastenal presently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $73.33.

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.