Yeomans Consulting Group Inc. Lowers Holdings in Fastenal (NASDAQ:FAST)

Yeomans Consulting Group Inc. reduced its stake in shares of Fastenal (NASDAQ:FAST) by 32.7% in the 4th quarter, Holdings Channel reports. The fund owned 5,001 shares of the company’s stock after selling 2,426 shares during the period. Yeomans Consulting Group Inc.’s holdings in Fastenal were worth $360,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission.

A number of other large investors also recently bought and sold shares of FAST. Veracity Capital LLC increased its holdings in shares of Fastenal by 38.2% during the 4th quarter. Veracity Capital LLC now owns 10,476 shares of the company’s stock valued at $753,000 after purchasing an additional 2,894 shares in the last quarter. True North Advisors LLC boosted its stake in shares of Fastenal by 129.3% during the 4th quarter. True North Advisors LLC now owns 76,125 shares of the company’s stock worth $5,474,000 after acquiring an additional 42,925 shares in the last quarter. Paradiem LLC boosted its stake in shares of Fastenal by 16.6% during the 4th quarter. Paradiem LLC now owns 171,283 shares of the company’s stock worth $12,317,000 after acquiring an additional 24,403 shares in the last quarter. Marino Stram & Associates LLC grew its position in shares of Fastenal by 1.3% during the 4th quarter. Marino Stram & Associates LLC now owns 14,566 shares of the company’s stock valued at $1,047,000 after acquiring an additional 193 shares during the period. Finally, Advisory Alpha LLC purchased a new position in shares of Fastenal in the 4th quarter valued at about $232,000. 81.38% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Fastenal Trading Down 0.2 %

Shares of Fastenal stock opened at $75.46 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 stock has a market cap of $43.23 billion, a P/E ratio of 37.54, a P/E/G ratio of 4.24 and a beta of 1.02. The stock’s 50 day simple moving average is $77.44 and its 200-day simple moving average is $73.27.

Fastenal (NASDAQ:FAST) last issued its earnings results on Friday, January 17th. The company reported $0.46 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $0.48 by ($0.02). Fastenal had a net margin of 15.25% and a return on equity of 32.55%. The company had revenue of $1.82 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $1,842,560.16 billion. During the same quarter in the previous year, the company earned $0.46 earnings per share. The firm’s quarterly revenue was up 3.7% compared to the same quarter last year. Analysts predict that Fastenal will post 2.16 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Fastenal Increases Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, February 28th. Investors of record on Friday, January 31st will be given a dividend of $0.43 per share. This is a boost from Fastenal’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.39. This represents a $1.72 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.28%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, January 31st. Fastenal’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 77.61%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

FAST has been the topic of several research analyst reports. Stephens raised their price objective on Fastenal from $56.00 to $75.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a report on Monday, October 14th. Hsbc Global Res lowered shares of Fastenal from a “hold” rating to a “moderate sell” rating in a report on Wednesday, December 11th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. upped their price objective on shares of Fastenal from $57.00 to $63.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research report on Thursday, October 10th. Robert W. Baird boosted their target price on shares of Fastenal from $67.00 to $80.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research note on Monday, October 14th. Finally, Bank of America initiated coverage on shares of Fastenal in a research note on Monday, October 7th. They issued a “buy” rating and a $85.00 price target on the stock. Two investment analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, eight have issued a hold rating and one has assigned a buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, Fastenal has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $76.91.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other news, Director Rita J. Heise sold 10,888 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, October 30th. The shares were sold at an average price of $77.67, for a total transaction of $845,670.96. Following the completion of the sale, the director now owns 20,000 shares in the company, valued at $1,553,400. This trade represents a 35.25 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this hyperlink. Also, CEO Daniel L. Florness sold 31,818 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, November 11th. The shares were sold at an average price of $84.50, for a total value of $2,688,621.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief executive officer now owns 286,018 shares in the company, valued at $24,168,521. This represents a 10.01 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold 74,660 shares of company stock valued at $6,211,126 over the last ninety days. Company insiders own 0.41% of the company’s stock.

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.