Venturi Wealth Management LLC Has $1.10 Million Holdings in Fastenal (NASDAQ:FAST)

Venturi Wealth Management LLC trimmed its position in Fastenal (NASDAQ:FAST) by 1.3% during the fourth quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund owned 15,342 shares of the company’s stock after selling 202 shares during the quarter. Venturi Wealth Management LLC’s holdings in Fastenal were worth $1,103,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other hedge funds and other institutional investors also recently made changes to their positions in the company. Blue Trust Inc. raised its position in Fastenal by 121.5% in the third quarter. Blue Trust Inc. now owns 8,193 shares of the company’s stock valued at $585,000 after purchasing an additional 4,494 shares during the last quarter. Capital Investment Advisors LLC bought a new stake in shares of Fastenal during the 3rd quarter valued at about $207,000. Raymond James & Associates grew its position in shares of Fastenal by 4.9% during the 3rd quarter. Raymond James & Associates now owns 982,452 shares of the company’s stock worth $70,167,000 after buying an additional 45,970 shares during the period. OLD National Bancorp IN grew its holdings in Fastenal by 2.6% in the third quarter. OLD National Bancorp IN now owns 13,527 shares of the company’s stock worth $966,000 after purchasing an additional 340 shares during the period. Finally, Allspring Global Investments Holdings LLC grew its stake in shares of Fastenal by 2.8% in the 3rd quarter. Allspring Global Investments Holdings LLC now owns 33,689 shares of the company’s stock valued at $2,406,000 after buying an additional 907 shares during the period. 81.38% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several equities research analysts have recently commented on FAST shares. Hsbc Global Res downgraded shares of Fastenal from a “hold” rating to a “moderate sell” rating in a research report on Wednesday, December 11th. Stifel Nicolaus lowered their target price on Fastenal from $86.00 to $82.00 and set a “hold” rating on the stock in a research note on Tuesday, January 21st. Wolfe Research increased their target price on shares of Fastenal from $74.00 to $76.00 and gave the company an “underweight” rating in a research report on Thursday, January 16th. Jefferies Financial Group lifted their price target on shares of Fastenal from $74.00 to $85.00 and gave the stock a “hold” rating in a report on Friday, December 6th. Finally, HSBC downgraded shares of Fastenal from a “hold” rating to a “reduce” rating and set a $70.00 price objective on the stock. in a report on Wednesday, December 11th. Two investment analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, eight have given a hold rating and one has assigned a buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $76.91.

Fastenal Price Performance

FAST stock opened at $74.81 on Wednesday. The firm has a 50 day simple moving average of $74.54 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $74.17. The stock has a market cap of $42.86 billion, a PE ratio of 37.22, a P/E/G ratio of 3.55 and a beta of 1.02. Fastenal has a one year low of $61.36 and a one 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.

Fastenal (NASDAQ:FAST) last announced 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 return on equity of 32.55% and a net margin of 15.25%. The company had revenue of $1.82 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $1.84 billion. During the same quarter last year, the firm posted $0.46 earnings per share. The firm’s revenue was up 3.7% on a year-over-year basis. On average, analysts predict that Fastenal will post 2.15 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Fastenal Increases Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, February 28th. Shareholders 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 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 2.30%. The ex-dividend date is Friday, January 31st. Fastenal’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 85.57%.

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.