Ferguson Wellman Capital Management Inc. Acquires 7,378 Shares of Fastenal Company $FAST

Ferguson Wellman Capital Management Inc. lifted its holdings in shares of Fastenal Company (NASDAQ:FAST) by 100.0% in the 2nd quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor owned 14,756 shares of the company’s stock after acquiring an additional 7,378 shares during the period. Ferguson Wellman Capital Management Inc.’s holdings in Fastenal were worth $620,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors also recently made changes to their positions in the business. Oregon Public Employees Retirement Fund grew its position in Fastenal by 0.3% in the 1st quarter. Oregon Public Employees Retirement Fund now owns 49,219 shares of the company’s stock worth $3,817,000 after purchasing an additional 130 shares in the last quarter. Welch & Forbes LLC lifted its position in shares of Fastenal by 0.4% during the 1st quarter. Welch & Forbes LLC now owns 32,992 shares of the company’s stock worth $2,559,000 after buying an additional 135 shares in the last quarter. Principal Securities Inc. lifted its position in shares of Fastenal by 0.9% during the 1st quarter. Principal Securities Inc. now owns 15,886 shares of the company’s stock worth $1,142,000 after buying an additional 140 shares in the last quarter. Salvus Wealth Management LLC lifted its position in shares of Fastenal by 1.6% during the 1st quarter. Salvus Wealth Management LLC now owns 9,000 shares of the company’s stock worth $698,000 after buying an additional 141 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Essex Financial Services Inc. lifted its position in shares of Fastenal by 1.7% during the 1st quarter. Essex Financial Services Inc. now owns 8,870 shares of the company’s stock worth $688,000 after buying an additional 147 shares in the last quarter. 81.38% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Insider Buying and Selling at Fastenal

In related news, CFO Sheryl Ann Lisowski sold 21,052 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, July 17th. The shares were sold at an average price of $45.21, for a total transaction of $951,760.92. Following the sale, the chief financial officer directly owned 10,192 shares in the company, valued at approximately $460,780.32. This represents a 67.38% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. Also, insider Jeffery Michael Watts sold 48,724 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, August 8th. The shares were sold at an average price of $48.05, for a total transaction of $2,341,188.20. Following the sale, the insider owned 11,880 shares in the company, valued at $570,834. The trade was a 80.40% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last 90 days, insiders have sold 111,230 shares of company stock valued at $5,288,364. 0.37% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Fastenal Stock Performance

Shares of FAST stock opened at $47.22 on Friday. The stock has a market capitalization of $54.19 billion, a P/E ratio of 45.40, a PEG ratio of 4.29 and a beta of 0.97. The company has a current ratio of 4.22, a quick ratio of 2.12 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.03. The firm’s 50 day moving average is $47.76 and its 200 day moving average is $42.82. Fastenal Company has a 12 month low of $34.69 and a 12 month high of $50.63.

Fastenal (NASDAQ:FAST) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Monday, July 14th. The company reported $0.29 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.28 by $0.01. The company had revenue of $2.08 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $2.07 billion. Fastenal had a net margin of 15.30% and a return on equity of 32.33%. Fastenal’s revenue was up 8.6% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the prior year, the company posted $0.25 EPS. On average, sell-side analysts anticipate that Fastenal Company will post 2.15 earnings per share for the current year.

Fastenal Cuts Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, August 26th. Investors of record on Tuesday, July 29th were paid a dividend of $0.22 per share. This represents a $0.88 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.9%. The ex-dividend date was Tuesday, July 29th. Fastenal’s dividend payout ratio is presently 84.62%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several equities analysts have commented on FAST shares. Morgan Stanley set a $40.00 target price on shares of Fastenal and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a research report on Thursday, July 3rd. JPMorgan Chase & Co. lifted their target price on shares of Fastenal from $41.00 to $46.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research report on Thursday, September 4th. Wolfe Research reissued a “positive” rating on shares of Fastenal in a research report on Monday, July 14th. Baird R W upgraded shares of Fastenal from a “hold” rating to a “strong-buy” rating in a research note on Thursday, August 7th. Finally, Stephens boosted their target price on shares of Fastenal from $40.00 to $45.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a research note on Tuesday, July 15th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, four have given a Buy rating, eight have issued a Hold rating and one has issued a Sell rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, Fastenal has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $46.82.

Fastenal 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.