Fastenal (NASDAQ:FAST) Receives Average Recommendation of “Hold” from Analysts

Fastenal (NASDAQ:FAST) has been assigned a consensus recommendation of “Hold” from the five analysts that are presently covering the company, Marketbeat reports. Four investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and one has given a buy rating to the company. The average twelve-month target price among analysts that have covered the stock in the last year is $67.67.

A number of brokerages have recently weighed in on FAST. Loop Capital lowered their price objective on shares of Fastenal from $71.00 to $66.00 and set a “hold” rating for the company in a report on Monday, April 15th. Robert W. Baird lowered their price target on shares of Fastenal from $77.00 to $71.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a report on Friday, April 12th. HSBC upped their price target on shares of Fastenal from $59.00 to $64.00 and gave the company a “hold” rating in a report on Monday, April 15th. Finally, Stifel Nicolaus upped their price target on shares of Fastenal from $75.00 to $85.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Monday, March 18th.

Fastenal Trading Up 0.1 %

Shares of FAST opened at $67.57 on Monday. The firm has a market cap of $38.69 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 33.45, a PEG ratio of 3.57 and a beta of 1.05. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.06, a quick ratio of 2.49 and a current ratio of 4.83. Fastenal has a fifty-two week low of $52.28 and a fifty-two week high of $79.04. The firm has a 50 day moving average price of $73.62 and a 200-day moving average price of $66.29.

Fastenal (NASDAQ:FAST) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, April 11th. The company reported $0.52 earnings per share for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.53 by ($0.01). The business had revenue of $1.90 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $1.91 billion. Fastenal had a return on equity of 33.98% and a net margin of 15.68%. The company’s revenue was up 1.9% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the previous year, the firm posted $0.52 earnings per share. As a group, equities research analysts forecast that Fastenal will post 2.13 earnings per share for the current year.

Fastenal Announces Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, May 23rd. Shareholders of record on Thursday, April 25th will be given a dividend of $0.39 per share. This represents a $1.56 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 2.31%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Wednesday, April 24th. Fastenal’s payout ratio is currently 77.23%.

Insider Buying and Selling at Fastenal

In related news, Director Daniel L. Johnson acquired 3,350 shares of Fastenal stock in a transaction on Wednesday, April 17th. The shares were acquired at an average cost of $68.38 per share, with a total value of $229,073.00. Following the transaction, the director now owns 10,595 shares in the company, valued at $724,486.10. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available through this hyperlink. In other Fastenal news, Director Daniel L. Johnson bought 3,350 shares of Fastenal stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, April 17th. The shares were purchased at an average cost of $68.38 per share, with a total value of $229,073.00. Following the transaction, the director now directly owns 10,595 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $724,486.10. The acquisition was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. Also, VP Charles S. Miller sold 11,076 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Friday, March 15th. The stock was sold at an average price of $75.16, for a total transaction of $832,472.16. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last ninety days, insiders have sold 71,640 shares of company stock valued at $5,044,657. 0.41% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Institutional Trading of Fastenal

Institutional investors have recently bought and sold shares of the company. Quarry LP grew its position in Fastenal by 62.3% during the 4th quarter. Quarry LP now owns 409 shares of the company’s stock valued at $26,000 after purchasing an additional 157 shares during the last quarter. Hartford Financial Management Inc. lifted its stake in Fastenal by 46.9% during the 4th quarter. Hartford Financial Management Inc. now owns 479 shares of the company’s stock valued at $31,000 after acquiring an additional 153 shares during the period. MCF Advisors LLC lifted its stake in Fastenal by 2,172.2% during the 1st quarter. MCF Advisors LLC now owns 409 shares of the company’s stock valued at $32,000 after acquiring an additional 391 shares during the period. Resurgent Financial Advisors LLC bought a new position in Fastenal during the 4th quarter valued at about $33,000. Finally, Harel Insurance Investments & Financial Services Ltd. bought a new position in Fastenal during the 4th quarter valued at about $35,000. 81.38% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

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.