Fastenal (NASDAQ:FAST) Reaches New 1-Year High – Here’s Why

Fastenal (NASDAQ:FAST) shares reached a new 52-week high during trading on Wednesday . The company traded as high as $81.45 and last traded at $81.11, with a volume of 68726 shares changing hands. The stock had previously closed at $78.09.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

FAST has been the subject of a number of recent analyst reports. Stephens upped their price target on Fastenal from $56.00 to $75.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a research report on Monday, October 14th. Morgan Stanley increased their target price on Fastenal from $72.00 to $76.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a research report on Monday, October 14th. Jefferies Financial Group decreased their target price on Fastenal from $74.00 to $65.00 and set a “hold” rating for the company in a research report on Thursday, July 11th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. increased their target price on Fastenal from $57.00 to $63.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research report on Thursday, October 10th. Finally, Stifel Nicolaus reissued a “buy” rating and issued a $86.00 target price (up previously from $80.00) on shares of Fastenal in a research report on Monday, October 14th. Seven research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and two have issued a buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, the company presently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $73.33.

Fastenal Price Performance

The firm has a 50 day moving average of $72.35 and a two-hundred day moving average of $68.38. The company has a current ratio of 4.40, a quick ratio of 2.29 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.03. The company has a market cap of $47.78 billion, a PE ratio of 38.85, a P/E/G ratio of 4.58 and a beta of 0.99.

Fastenal (NASDAQ:FAST) last issued its earnings results on Friday, October 11th. The company reported $0.52 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $0.51 by $0.01. Fastenal had a return on equity of 33.30% and a net margin of 15.44%. The business had revenue of $1.91 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $1.90 billion. During the same period last year, the business posted $0.52 EPS. The company’s revenue was up 3.5% compared to the same quarter last year. Research analysts predict that Fastenal will post 2.03 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Fastenal Dividend Announcement

The firm 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 dividend of $0.39 per share. The ex-dividend date is Friday, October 25th. This represents a $1.56 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.87%. Fastenal’s dividend payout ratio is 77.61%.

Insider Buying and Selling at Fastenal

In other news, CEO Daniel L. Florness sold 45,744 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Wednesday, August 21st. The stock was sold at an average price of $68.14, for a total value of $3,116,996.16. Following the transaction, the chief executive officer now directly owns 286,018 shares in the company, valued at $19,489,266.52. This trade represents a 0.00 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available at this link. In other news, CEO Daniel L. Florness sold 50,000 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Thursday, September 12th. The stock was sold at an average price of $69.68, for a total value of $3,484,000.00. Following the transaction, the chief executive officer now directly owns 286,018 shares in the company, valued at $19,929,734.24. This trade represents a 0.00 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available at this link. Also, CEO Daniel L. Florness sold 45,744 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Wednesday, August 21st. The stock was sold at an average price of $68.14, for a total value of $3,116,996.16. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief executive officer now owns 286,018 shares in the company, valued at approximately $19,489,266.52. This trade represents a 0.00 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last three months, insiders have sold 190,261 shares of company stock worth $13,874,979. Insiders own 0.41% of the company’s stock.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Fastenal

A number of institutional investors and hedge funds have recently modified their holdings of FAST. ProShare Advisors LLC raised its holdings in Fastenal by 497.3% in the 1st quarter. ProShare Advisors LLC now owns 3,099,333 shares of the company’s stock worth $239,083,000 after purchasing an additional 2,580,478 shares during the period. Marshall Wace LLP raised its holdings in Fastenal by 4,008.2% in the 2nd quarter. Marshall Wace LLP now owns 756,241 shares of the company’s stock worth $47,522,000 after purchasing an additional 737,833 shares during the period. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP raised its holdings in Fastenal by 19.9% in the 2nd quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP now owns 3,837,530 shares of the company’s stock worth $241,161,000 after purchasing an additional 636,546 shares during the period. Renaissance Technologies LLC bought a new position in Fastenal in the 2nd quarter worth $37,659,000. Finally, TD Asset Management Inc raised its holdings in Fastenal by 21.2% in the 1st quarter. TD Asset Management Inc now owns 3,248,853 shares of the company’s stock worth $250,617,000 after purchasing an additional 569,118 shares during the period. 81.38% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Fastenal Company Profile

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.