Insider Selling: Fastenal (NASDAQ:FAST) Director Sells 8,474 Shares of Stock

Fastenal (NASDAQ:FAST) Director Daniel L. Johnson sold 8,474 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, November 13th. The shares were sold at an average price of $83.36, for a total transaction of $706,392.64. Following the sale, the director now owns 10,595 shares in the company, valued at $883,199.20. This represents a 44.44 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this hyperlink.

Fastenal Price Performance

Shares of FAST stock opened at $81.85 on Friday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.03, a current ratio of 4.40 and a quick ratio of 2.29. The company has a market capitalization of $46.89 billion, a P/E ratio of 40.72, a P/E/G ratio of 4.90 and a beta of 0.99. The company’s 50-day simple moving average is $74.64 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $69.13. Fastenal has a one year low of $59.47 and a one year high of $84.88.

Fastenal (NASDAQ:FAST) last issued its earnings results on Friday, October 11th. The company reported $0.52 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.51 by $0.01. The business had revenue of $1.91 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $1.90 billion. Fastenal had a net margin of 15.44% and a return on equity of 33.30%. The company’s revenue for the quarter was up 3.5% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the prior year, the firm earned $0.52 EPS. As a group, equities analysts anticipate that Fastenal will post 2.03 EPS for the current year.

Fastenal Dividend Announcement

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 paid a $0.39 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Friday, October 25th. This represents a $1.56 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.91%. Fastenal’s dividend payout ratio is currently 77.61%.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Fastenal

A number of hedge funds have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the stock. Aaron Wealth Advisors LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Fastenal in the 3rd quarter worth approximately $310,000. Cetera Investment Advisers lifted its position in shares of Fastenal by 499.7% in the 1st quarter. Cetera Investment Advisers now owns 132,046 shares of the company’s stock worth $10,186,000 after purchasing an additional 110,027 shares during the period. M&G Plc purchased a new stake in shares of Fastenal in the 1st quarter worth approximately $11,212,000. Wealth Enhancement Advisory Services LLC lifted its position in shares of Fastenal by 5.7% in the 2nd quarter. Wealth Enhancement Advisory Services LLC now owns 210,998 shares of the company’s stock worth $13,259,000 after purchasing an additional 11,436 shares during the period. Finally, Peak Financial Advisors LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Fastenal in the 2nd quarter worth approximately $2,643,000. 81.38% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several analysts have recently issued reports on FAST shares. UBS Group started coverage on shares of Fastenal in a research report on Wednesday. They set a “neutral” rating and a $88.00 target price on the stock. Morgan Stanley upped their target price on shares of Fastenal from $72.00 to $76.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a research report on Monday, October 14th. Stephens upped their target price on shares of Fastenal from $56.00 to $75.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a research report on Monday, October 14th. Stifel Nicolaus restated a “buy” rating and set a $86.00 target price (up from $80.00) on shares of Fastenal in a research report on Monday, October 14th. Finally, Robert W. Baird upped their price target on shares of Fastenal from $67.00 to $80.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a report on Monday, October 14th. Eight research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and two have given a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $74.80.

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.