Fastenal (NASDAQ:FAST) Shares Bought by D.A. Davidson & CO.

D.A. Davidson & CO. lifted its position in shares of Fastenal (NASDAQ:FAST) by 7.9% in the 4th quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The fund owned 25,104 shares of the company’s stock after buying an additional 1,841 shares during the quarter. D.A. Davidson & CO.’s holdings in Fastenal were worth $1,805,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also made changes to their positions in FAST. Ashton Thomas Securities LLC acquired a new position in shares of Fastenal during the 3rd quarter worth $25,000. Knuff & Co LLC acquired a new position in shares of Fastenal during the 3rd quarter worth $27,000. First Personal Financial Services acquired a new position in shares of Fastenal during the 3rd quarter worth $36,000. MCF Advisors LLC raised its stake in shares of Fastenal by 54.1% during the 3rd quarter. MCF Advisors LLC now owns 635 shares of the company’s stock worth $45,000 after buying an additional 223 shares during the last quarter. Finally, R Squared Ltd purchased a new stake in Fastenal during the 4th quarter worth about $68,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 81.38% of the company’s stock.

Fastenal Stock Down 0.5 %

FAST opened at $74.78 on Friday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.03, a current ratio of 4.67 and a quick ratio of 2.28. The stock has a market capitalization of $42.88 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 37.20, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 3.58 and a beta of 1.02. The business has a 50-day moving average of $74.22 and a two-hundred day moving average of $74.30. Fastenal has a 12 month low of $61.36 and a 12 month high of $84.88.

Fastenal (NASDAQ:FAST) last issued its earnings results on Friday, January 17th. The company reported $0.46 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates 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 for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $1.84 billion. During the same quarter in the previous year, the firm posted $0.46 EPS. The firm’s revenue for the quarter was up 3.7% compared to the same quarter last year. On average, research analysts expect that Fastenal will post 2.15 earnings per share for the current year.

Fastenal Increases Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, February 28th. Stockholders of record on Friday, January 31st will be issued a dividend of $0.43 per share. The ex-dividend date is Friday, January 31st. This represents a $1.72 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 2.30%. This is a boost from Fastenal’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.39. Fastenal’s payout ratio is presently 85.57%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of analysts recently commented on the company. UBS Group assumed coverage on Fastenal in a research report on Wednesday, November 13th. They set a “neutral” rating and a $88.00 price objective for the company. Jefferies Financial Group lifted their price objective on Fastenal from $74.00 to $85.00 and gave the stock a “hold” rating in a research report on Friday, December 6th. Stifel Nicolaus dropped their price objective on Fastenal from $86.00 to $82.00 and set a “hold” rating for the company in a research report on Tuesday, January 21st. Wolfe Research lifted their price objective on Fastenal from $74.00 to $76.00 and gave the stock an “underweight” rating in a research report on Thursday, January 16th. Finally, Hsbc Global Res cut Fastenal from a “hold” rating to a “moderate sell” rating in a research report on Wednesday, December 11th. Two analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, eight have issued a hold rating and one has given a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat, Fastenal presently has an average rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $76.91.

Fastenal Company 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.