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

Fastenal (NASDAQ:FAST) CFO Holden Lewis sold 30,000 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction 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 sale, 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 sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this hyperlink.

Fastenal Price Performance

Shares of FAST opened at $77.77 on Thursday. The firm has a market cap of $44.53 billion, a PE ratio of 38.69, a PEG ratio of 4.13 and a beta of 1.01. The firm’s 50 day moving average price is $69.46 and its 200 day moving average price is $67.95. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.04, a quick ratio of 2.29 and a current ratio of 4.39. Fastenal has a twelve month low of $56.41 and a twelve month high of $79.04.

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

Fastenal Announces Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, November 22nd. Shareholders of record on Friday, October 25th will be issued a dividend of $0.39 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, October 25th. This represents a $1.56 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.01%. Fastenal’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 77.61%.

Institutional Trading of Fastenal

Several large investors have recently made changes to their positions in FAST. Central Valley Advisors LLC bought a new position in shares of Fastenal in the 2nd quarter valued at approximately $28,000. MCF Advisors LLC raised its position in shares of Fastenal by 2,172.2% in the first quarter. MCF Advisors LLC now owns 409 shares of the company’s stock valued at $32,000 after purchasing an additional 391 shares during the period. Triad Wealth Partners LLC bought a new position in shares of Fastenal in the second quarter valued at approximately $32,000. Crewe Advisors LLC lifted its stake in shares of Fastenal by 528.4% in the second quarter. Crewe Advisors LLC now owns 509 shares of the company’s stock worth $32,000 after buying an additional 428 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Moisand Fitzgerald Tamayo LLC boosted its holdings in shares of Fastenal by 1,019.0% during the 3rd quarter. Moisand Fitzgerald Tamayo LLC now owns 470 shares of the company’s stock worth $34,000 after buying an additional 428 shares during the period. Institutional investors own 81.38% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several research analysts have commented on FAST shares. Bank of America began coverage on shares of Fastenal in a report on Monday, October 7th. They issued a “buy” rating and a $85.00 target price for the company. Jefferies Financial Group decreased their price objective on shares of Fastenal from $74.00 to $65.00 and set a “hold” rating for the company in a research note on Thursday, July 11th. Morgan Stanley increased their target price on Fastenal from $72.00 to $76.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a report on Monday. Stifel Nicolaus restated a “buy” rating and issued a $86.00 target price (up previously from $80.00) on shares of Fastenal in a report on Monday. Finally, Robert W. Baird lifted their price target on Fastenal from $67.00 to $80.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a report on Monday. Seven analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and two have given a buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $73.33.

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.