Fastenal (NASDAQ:FAST) Short Interest Update

Fastenal (NASDAQ:FAST) was the target of a large decline in short interest in the month of July. As of July 31st, there was short interest totalling 13,890,000 shares, a decline of 13.0% from the July 15th total of 15,960,000 shares. Approximately 2.4% of the shares of the company are sold short. Based on an average daily volume of 3,260,000 shares, the days-to-cover ratio is presently 4.3 days.

Insider Buying and Selling at Fastenal

In other news, EVP James C. Jansen sold 11,428 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, May 29th. The shares were sold at an average price of $64.07, for a total value of $732,191.96. Following the transaction, the executive vice president now owns 26,176 shares in the company, valued at approximately $1,677,096.32. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through the SEC website. In related news, Director Hsenghung Sam Hsu bought 500 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, June 10th. The shares were bought at an average cost of $63.28 per share, for a total transaction of $31,640.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the director now owns 3,500 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $221,480. The acquisition was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. Also, EVP James C. Jansen sold 11,428 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, May 29th. The stock was sold at an average price of $64.07, for a total value of $732,191.96. Following the completion of the sale, the executive vice president now owns 26,176 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $1,677,096.32. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Corporate insiders own 0.41% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Trading of Fastenal

Hedge funds have recently modified their holdings of the company. Quarry LP purchased a new stake in Fastenal during the second quarter valued at $106,000. Creative Planning increased its holdings in shares of Fastenal by 10.4% in the 2nd quarter. Creative Planning now owns 138,799 shares of the company’s stock worth $8,722,000 after buying an additional 13,045 shares during the last quarter. SkyView Investment Advisors LLC raised its position in shares of Fastenal by 19.6% during the 2nd quarter. SkyView Investment Advisors LLC now owns 3,900 shares of the company’s stock valued at $245,000 after buying an additional 638 shares in the last quarter. Scientech Research LLC bought a new position in shares of Fastenal in the 2nd quarter valued at about $567,000. Finally, Legal & General Group Plc grew its position in Fastenal by 3.4% in the second quarter. Legal & General Group Plc now owns 5,909,206 shares of the company’s stock worth $371,334,000 after acquiring an additional 193,734 shares in the last quarter. 81.38% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

FAST has been the subject of several analyst reports. Jefferies Financial Group reduced their target price on shares of Fastenal from $74.00 to $65.00 and set a “hold” rating for the company in a report on Thursday, July 11th. Stifel Nicolaus restated a “buy” rating and set a $80.00 price objective (down from $85.00) on shares of Fastenal in a research report on Monday, July 15th. Robert W. Baird lowered their target price on shares of Fastenal from $71.00 to $69.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a research note on Tuesday, May 7th. Finally, Stephens reiterated an “equal weight” rating and issued a $56.00 price target on shares of Fastenal in a research note on Monday, July 15th. Six equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and one has assigned a buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the company presently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $66.67.

Fastenal Price Performance

Shares of NASDAQ:FAST traded down $0.90 during midday trading on Monday, reaching $66.55. 1,969,901 shares of the company were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 3,607,290. The stock has a market cap of $38.10 billion, a PE ratio of 33.11, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 3.65 and a beta of 1.01. The business’s fifty day moving average is $65.86 and its two-hundred day moving average is $68.91. Fastenal has a one year low of $53.83 and a one year high of $79.04. The company has a current ratio of 4.39, a quick ratio of 2.29 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.04.

Fastenal (NASDAQ:FAST) last released its quarterly earnings data on Friday, July 12th. The company reported $0.51 EPS for the quarter, meeting the consensus estimate of $0.51. Fastenal had a net margin of 15.54% and a return on equity of 33.54%. The business had revenue of $1.92 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $1.91 billion. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm earned $0.52 EPS. The business’s revenue was up 1.8% on a year-over-year basis. As a group, analysts predict that Fastenal will post 2.05 earnings per share for the current year.

Fastenal Dividend Announcement

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, August 23rd. Shareholders of record on Friday, July 26th will be issued a dividend of $0.39 per share. This represents a $1.56 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.34%. The ex-dividend date is Friday, July 26th. Fastenal’s dividend payout ratio is presently 77.61%.

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.