Fastenal (NASDAQ:FAST) Shares Sold by Oppenheimer Asset Management Inc.

Oppenheimer Asset Management Inc. lowered its position in shares of Fastenal (NASDAQ:FAST) by 26.3% in the 4th quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the SEC. The fund owned 126,230 shares of the company’s stock after selling 45,116 shares during the period. Oppenheimer Asset Management Inc.’s holdings in Fastenal were worth $9,077,000 as of its most recent filing with the SEC.

A number of other large investors have also modified their holdings of the company. Ashton Thomas Securities LLC bought a new position in Fastenal in the 3rd quarter worth about $25,000. Knuff & Co LLC bought a new stake in shares of Fastenal during the third quarter valued at approximately $27,000. First Personal Financial Services acquired a new position in shares of Fastenal during the third quarter worth approximately $36,000. Whipplewood Advisors LLC acquired a new position in shares of Fastenal during the fourth quarter worth approximately $49,000. Finally, R Squared Ltd bought a new position in Fastenal in the 4th quarter worth approximately $68,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 81.38% of the company’s stock.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several brokerages have weighed in on FAST. Hsbc Global Res downgraded Fastenal from a “hold” rating to a “moderate sell” rating in a research note on Wednesday, December 11th. HSBC cut shares of Fastenal from a “hold” rating to a “reduce” rating and set a $70.00 price objective on the stock. in a research note on Wednesday, December 11th. Stifel Nicolaus decreased their target price on shares of Fastenal from $86.00 to $82.00 and set a “hold” rating for the company in a research report on Tuesday, January 21st. UBS Group initiated coverage on shares of Fastenal in a research report on Wednesday, November 13th. They set a “neutral” rating and a $88.00 price target on the stock. Finally, Jefferies Financial Group upped their price target on shares of Fastenal from $74.00 to $85.00 and gave the stock a “hold” rating in a research note on Friday, December 6th. Two research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, eight have given a hold rating and one has assigned a buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company presently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $76.91.

Fastenal Stock Up 0.3 %

NASDAQ FAST opened at $74.09 on Friday. Fastenal has a 12 month low of $61.36 and a 12 month high of $84.88. The company has a market capitalization of $42.48 billion, a P/E ratio of 36.86, a PEG ratio of 3.58 and a beta of 1.02. The company’s 50 day simple moving average is $74.08 and its 200 day simple moving average is $74.54. 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 posted its quarterly 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). The company had revenue of $1.82 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $1.84 billion. Fastenal had a net margin of 15.25% and a return on equity of 32.55%. Fastenal’s quarterly revenue was up 3.7% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the prior year, the company posted $0.46 EPS. Equities research analysts expect that Fastenal will post 2.15 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Fastenal Increases Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, February 28th. Investors of record on Friday, January 31st will be given a $0.43 dividend. This is a positive change from Fastenal’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.39. The ex-dividend date is Friday, January 31st. This represents a $1.72 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 2.32%. Fastenal’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 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.