Fastenal (NASDAQ:FAST) Shares Sold by Dean Investment Associates LLC

Dean Investment Associates LLC reduced its holdings in Fastenal (NASDAQ:FAST) by 2.8% in the 3rd quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund owned 82,935 shares of the company’s stock after selling 2,405 shares during the quarter. Fastenal makes up 0.8% of Dean Investment Associates LLC’s portfolio, making the stock its 24th biggest holding. Dean Investment Associates LLC’s holdings in Fastenal were worth $5,923,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other large investors have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. CWM LLC lifted its holdings in shares of Fastenal by 4.7% during the 2nd quarter. CWM LLC now owns 21,703 shares of the company’s stock worth $1,364,000 after acquiring an additional 977 shares during the period. QRG Capital Management Inc. increased its position in Fastenal by 2.3% during the second quarter. QRG Capital Management Inc. now owns 49,316 shares of the company’s stock worth $3,099,000 after purchasing an additional 1,121 shares during the last quarter. SG Americas Securities LLC raised its stake in Fastenal by 51.1% during the second quarter. SG Americas Securities LLC now owns 147,446 shares of the company’s stock worth $9,266,000 after purchasing an additional 49,895 shares during the period. Gateway Investment Advisers LLC boosted its holdings in shares of Fastenal by 14.3% in the 2nd quarter. Gateway Investment Advisers LLC now owns 15,645 shares of the company’s stock valued at $983,000 after purchasing an additional 1,962 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Czech National Bank grew its stake in shares of Fastenal by 8.4% during the 2nd quarter. Czech National Bank now owns 109,095 shares of the company’s stock valued at $6,856,000 after buying an additional 8,410 shares during the period. 81.38% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Fastenal Price Performance

Shares of FAST stock opened at $81.05 on Friday. The firm has a fifty day simple moving average of $78.63 and a 200-day simple moving average of $70.85. The company has a market capitalization of $46.43 billion, a PE ratio of 40.32, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 4.81 and a beta of 1.00. Fastenal has a twelve month low of $61.33 and a twelve month high of $84.88. The company has a current ratio of 4.40, a quick ratio of 2.29 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.03.

Fastenal (NASDAQ:FAST) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Friday, October 11th. The company reported $0.52 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.51 by $0.01. Fastenal had a net margin of 15.44% and a return on equity of 33.30%. The company had revenue of $1.91 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $1.90 billion. During the same period in the prior year, the company posted $0.52 EPS. The firm’s revenue for the quarter was up 3.5% on a year-over-year basis. Equities research analysts anticipate that Fastenal will post 2.03 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Fastenal Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, November 22nd. Shareholders of record on Friday, October 25th were paid a dividend of $0.39 per share. The ex-dividend date was Friday, October 25th. This represents a $1.56 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.92%. Fastenal’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 77.61%.

Insider Buying and Selling at Fastenal

In other news, VP Charles S. Miller sold 23,480 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, November 13th. The shares were sold at an average price of $83.92, for a total value of $1,970,441.60. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is accessible through the SEC website. Also, VP John Lewis Soderberg sold 488 shares of Fastenal stock in a transaction dated Monday, October 14th. The stock was sold at an average price of $76.32, for a total value of $37,244.16. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold a total of 208,289 shares of company stock worth $16,123,438 in the last 90 days. 0.41% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of research analysts recently weighed in on FAST shares. JPMorgan Chase & Co. lifted their target price on Fastenal from $57.00 to $63.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a report on Thursday, October 10th. Stifel Nicolaus reissued a “buy” rating and set a $86.00 target price (up previously from $80.00) on shares of Fastenal in a research report on Monday, October 14th. Jefferies Financial Group lifted their price target on shares of Fastenal from $74.00 to $85.00 and gave the company a “hold” rating in a research report on Friday. Robert W. Baird increased their price objective on shares of Fastenal from $67.00 to $80.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research report on Monday, October 14th. Finally, UBS Group began coverage on shares of Fastenal in a report on Wednesday, November 13th. They set a “neutral” rating and a $88.00 target price on the stock. Eight investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and two have assigned a buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, the company has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $76.80.

Fastenal 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.