Commonwealth Equity Services LLC Acquires 1,961 Shares of Fastenal (NASDAQ:FAST)

Commonwealth Equity Services LLC raised its holdings in shares of Fastenal (NASDAQ:FAST) by 0.7% in the fourth quarter, Holdings Channel.com reports. The firm owned 301,423 shares of the company’s stock after purchasing an additional 1,961 shares during the period. Commonwealth Equity Services LLC’s holdings in Fastenal were worth $21,675,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other large investors have also recently made changes to their positions in the company. King Luther Capital Management Corp grew its position in Fastenal by 1.6% during the 3rd quarter. King Luther Capital Management Corp now owns 8,664 shares of the company’s stock valued at $619,000 after purchasing an additional 136 shares during the last quarter. HB Wealth Management LLC increased its position in shares of Fastenal by 1.2% during the fourth quarter. HB Wealth Management LLC now owns 11,674 shares of the company’s stock valued at $840,000 after acquiring an additional 142 shares in the last quarter. Checchi Capital Advisers LLC raised its holdings in Fastenal by 2.4% in the 4th quarter. Checchi Capital Advisers LLC now owns 7,008 shares of the company’s stock worth $504,000 after acquiring an additional 164 shares during the last quarter. Geneos Wealth Management Inc. raised its holdings in Fastenal by 8.9% in the 4th quarter. Geneos Wealth Management Inc. now owns 2,038 shares of the company’s stock worth $147,000 after acquiring an additional 166 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Resonant Capital Advisors LLC boosted its stake in Fastenal by 1.3% during the 4th quarter. Resonant Capital Advisors LLC now owns 14,270 shares of the company’s stock valued at $1,026,000 after purchasing an additional 177 shares during the last quarter. 81.38% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Fastenal Stock Performance

Shares of FAST opened at $75.26 on Monday. The business has a 50-day simple moving average of $74.74 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $75.35. The company has a quick ratio of 2.28, a current ratio of 4.67 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.03. Fastenal has a 52 week low of $61.36 and a 52 week high of $84.88. The stock has a market cap of $43.16 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 37.44, a PEG ratio of 3.58 and a beta of 1.05.

Fastenal (NASDAQ:FAST) last released its 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). Fastenal had a return on equity of 32.55% and a net margin of 15.25%. The firm had revenue of $1.82 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $1.84 billion. During the same period in the prior year, the company posted $0.46 earnings per share. The company’s revenue was up 3.7% compared to the same quarter last year. On average, analysts expect that Fastenal will post 2.15 EPS for the current year.

Fastenal Increases Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, February 28th. Investors of record on Friday, January 31st were paid a dividend of $0.43 per share. This is a boost from Fastenal’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.39. The ex-dividend date was Friday, January 31st. This represents a $1.72 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 2.29%. Fastenal’s payout ratio is 85.57%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several research analysts have recently weighed in on the company. HSBC cut Fastenal from a “hold” rating to a “reduce” rating and set a $70.00 price target for the company. in a research note on Wednesday, December 11th. Stifel Nicolaus dropped their price target on shares of Fastenal from $86.00 to $82.00 and set a “hold” rating on the stock in a report on Tuesday, January 21st. Wolfe Research lifted their price target on shares of Fastenal from $74.00 to $76.00 and gave the stock an “underweight” rating in a research note on Thursday, January 16th. William Blair upgraded shares of Fastenal from a “market perform” rating to an “outperform” rating in a research report on Monday, March 10th. Finally, Hsbc Global Res downgraded shares of Fastenal from a “hold” rating to a “moderate sell” rating in a research report on Wednesday, December 11th. Two equities research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, eight have assigned a hold rating and two have given a buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $76.91.

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.