Global Retirement Partners LLC Makes New $632,000 Investment in Fastenal Company $FAST

Global Retirement Partners LLC purchased a new stake in Fastenal Company (NASDAQ:FAST) during the second quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund purchased 13,150 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $632,000.

Several other large investors have also recently bought and sold shares of the business. Elyxium Wealth LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Fastenal during the 4th quarter worth $25,000. Palladiem LLC purchased a new stake in Fastenal during the fourth quarter worth about $25,000. Evergreen Advisors LLC purchased a new stake in Fastenal during the first quarter worth about $26,000. MV Capital Management Inc. acquired a new position in Fastenal during the fourth quarter worth about $29,000. Finally, Field & Main Bank purchased a new position in Fastenal in the fourth quarter valued at about $30,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 81.38% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

FAST has been the topic of a number of research reports. DA Davidson restated a “neutral” rating and issued a $46.00 price target on shares of Fastenal in a report on Wednesday, July 15th. Robert W. Baird set a $54.00 target price on Fastenal in a report on Friday, August 7th. Wolfe Research restated an “underperform” rating and issued a $47.00 price target on shares of Fastenal in a research report on Thursday, July 9th. Weiss Ratings downgraded Fastenal from a “buy (b)” rating to a “buy (b-)” rating in a research note on Tuesday, July 21st. Finally, Morgan Stanley boosted their price objective on shares of Fastenal from $48.00 to $52.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a research report on Thursday, July 16th. Five investment analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, six have given a Hold rating and two have assigned a Sell rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock has an average rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $49.17.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other Fastenal news, Director Rita J. Heise sold 34,964 shares of Fastenal stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, August 5th. The stock was sold at an average price of $50.05, for a total value of $1,749,948.20. Following the completion of the sale, the director owned 20,000 shares in the company, valued at $1,001,000. The trade was a 63.61% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this link. Also, Director Michael J. Ancius sold 3,000 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, July 28th. The shares were sold at an average price of $49.00, for a total transaction of $147,000.00. Following the transaction, the director directly owned 58,690 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $2,875,810. This represents a 4.86% decrease in their position. Additional details regarding this sale are available in the official SEC disclosure. 0.28% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Fastenal Price Performance

NASDAQ:FAST opened at $51.27 on Wednesday. Fastenal Company has a 12-month low of $38.97 and a 12-month high of $52.92. The firm has a market cap of $58.83 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 43.45, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 3.18 and a beta of 0.72. The company’s 50-day moving average is $47.67 and its two-hundred day moving average is $46.22. The company has a current ratio of 4.18, a quick ratio of 2.21 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.01.

Fastenal (NASDAQ:FAST) last announced its earnings results on Tuesday, July 14th. The company reported $0.33 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, hitting analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.33. The firm had revenue of $2.39 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $2.34 billion. Fastenal had a net margin of 15.45% and a return on equity of 34.03%. Fastenal’s revenue was up 14.7% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter last year, the business earned $0.29 earnings per share. Research analysts expect that Fastenal Company will post 1.26 EPS for the current year.

Fastenal Increases Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, August 25th. Stockholders of record on Tuesday, July 28th will be issued a dividend of $0.26 per share. This represents a $1.04 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 2.0%. This is a positive change from Fastenal’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.24. The ex-dividend date 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.