Plato Investment Management Ltd Makes New $1.16 Million Investment in Fastenal Company $FAST

Plato Investment Management Ltd bought a new stake in Fastenal Company (NASDAQ:FAST) in the 2nd quarter, Holdings Channel reports. The institutional investor bought 24,200 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $1,156,000.

Other hedge funds have also recently made changes to their positions in the company. Bell Investment Advisors Inc bought a new position in Fastenal in the 2nd quarter valued at approximately $44,000. AMG National Trust Bank acquired a new position in Fastenal in the 2nd quarter valued at approximately $284,000. Compass Capital Management Inc. bought a new position in shares of Fastenal during the second quarter valued at $58,774,000. Simplicity Wealth LLC bought a new position in shares of Fastenal during the second quarter valued at $211,000. Finally, Longfellow Investment Management Co. LLC acquired a new position in shares of Fastenal during the second quarter worth $545,000. 81.38% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

FAST has been the subject of a number of recent research reports. Sanford C. Bernstein restated an “underperform” rating on shares of Fastenal in a report on Wednesday, July 15th. DA Davidson reiterated a “neutral” rating and issued a $46.00 price target on shares of Fastenal in a research report on Wednesday, July 15th. Rothschild & Co Redburn set a $55.00 price target on Fastenal and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Monday, July 13th. Robert W. Baird set a $54.00 price objective on Fastenal in a research report on Friday, August 7th. Finally, Barclays cut their price objective on Fastenal from $47.00 to $46.00 and set an “equal weight” rating on the stock in a research note on Thursday, July 16th. Five analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, six have assigned a Hold rating and two have assigned a Sell rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, Fastenal currently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $49.17.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other news, Director Rita J. Heise sold 34,964 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, August 5th. The shares were sold at an average price of $50.05, for a total transaction of $1,749,948.20. Following the completion of the sale, the director owned 20,000 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $1,001,000. This trade represents a 63.61% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available through this link. Also, Director Michael J. Ancius sold 3,000 shares of Fastenal stock in a transaction on Tuesday, July 28th. The shares were sold at an average price of $49.00, for a total transaction of $147,000.00. Following the completion of the sale, the director owned 58,690 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $2,875,810. This represents a 4.86% decrease in their position. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. Insiders own 0.28% of the company’s stock.

Fastenal Stock Performance

Shares of FAST opened at $51.23 on Tuesday. The company has a current ratio of 4.18, a quick ratio of 2.21 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.01. The stock has a market capitalization of $58.79 billion, a P/E ratio of 43.42, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 3.18 and a beta of 0.72. The firm’s fifty day simple moving average is $47.58 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $46.17. Fastenal Company has a 12 month low of $38.97 and a 12 month high of $52.92.

Fastenal (NASDAQ:FAST) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, July 14th. The company reported $0.33 earnings per share for the quarter, hitting the consensus estimate of $0.33. The firm had revenue of $2.39 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $2.34 billion. Fastenal had a return on equity of 34.03% and a net margin of 15.45%.The business’s quarterly revenue was up 14.7% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period last year, the company posted $0.29 EPS. As a group, analysts predict that Fastenal Company will post 1.26 EPS for the current year.

Fastenal Increases Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, August 25th. Investors of record on Tuesday, July 28th will be paid a dividend of $0.26 per share. This is an increase from Fastenal’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.24. This represents a $1.04 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.0%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Tuesday, July 28th. Fastenal’s payout ratio is 88.14%.

Fastenal Company Profile

Fastenal (NASDAQ: FAST) is a wholesale distributor of industrial and construction supplies, best known for its broad assortment of fasteners such as bolts, nuts, screws and anchors. Founded in Winona, Minnesota, Fastenal has grown from a regional supplier into a national and international distributor serving a wide range of end markets, including manufacturing, construction, maintenance, repair and operations (MRO), and government customers. The company is publicly traded and operates through a network of locally staffed branches combined with national distribution capabilities.

Product offerings extend beyond fasteners to include tools, safety and personal protective equipment, power transmission components, cutting and welding supplies, janitorial and material handling items, and other industrial consumables.