Fastenal (NASDAQ:FAST) Stock Position Decreased by Commerce Bank

Commerce Bank reduced its holdings in shares of Fastenal (NASDAQ:FAST - Free Report) by 5.1% in the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the SEC. The institutional investor owned 74,297 shares of the company's stock after selling 3,988 shares during the quarter. Commerce Bank's holdings in Fastenal were worth $5,343,000 as of its most recent filing with the SEC.

Several other hedge funds also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the stock. Sound Financial Strategies Group LLC acquired a new stake in Fastenal during the 4th quarter worth $873,000. Matrix Trust Co acquired a new stake in shares of Fastenal during the fourth quarter worth about $1,756,000. Franklin Resources Inc. lifted its holdings in shares of Fastenal by 3.8% in the 3rd quarter. Franklin Resources Inc. now owns 4,572,999 shares of the company's stock valued at $350,703,000 after purchasing an additional 165,423 shares during the last quarter. Czech National Bank boosted its position in shares of Fastenal by 6.5% in the 4th quarter. Czech National Bank now owns 124,213 shares of the company's stock valued at $8,932,000 after purchasing an additional 7,559 shares during the period. Finally, Armstrong Henry H Associates Inc. grew its stake in Fastenal by 29.9% during the 4th quarter. Armstrong Henry H Associates Inc. now owns 36,367 shares of the company's stock worth $2,615,000 after buying an additional 8,380 shares during the last quarter. 81.38% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Insider Buying and Selling at Fastenal

In other news, EVP William Joseph Drazkowski sold 15,000 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Monday, April 14th. The shares were sold at an average price of $81.31, for a total transaction of $1,219,650.00. Following the transaction, the executive vice president now owns 5,997 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $487,616.07. This trade represents a 71.44 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is accessible through this hyperlink. 0.37% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several research firms have recently weighed in on FAST. Wolfe Research raised Fastenal from an "underperform" rating to a "peer perform" rating in a report on Thursday, April 3rd. Stifel Nicolaus lowered their price objective on shares of Fastenal from $86.00 to $82.00 and set a "hold" rating on the stock in a research report on Tuesday, January 21st. William Blair raised shares of Fastenal from a "market perform" rating to an "outperform" rating in a report on Monday, March 10th. Stephens raised their price target on Fastenal from $75.00 to $80.00 and gave the stock an "equal weight" rating in a report on Tuesday, April 15th. Finally, Robert W. Baird upped their price objective on Fastenal from $80.00 to $86.00 and gave the company a "neutral" rating in a research note on Monday, April 14th. One analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, eight have given a hold rating and two have issued a buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, Fastenal currently has an average rating of "Hold" and a consensus price target of $79.10.

Fastenal Trading Down 0.9 %

FAST traded down $0.71 during midday trading on Friday, hitting $80.95. The company's stock had a trading volume of 919,232 shares, compared to its average volume of 3,082,991. Fastenal has a 52-week low of $61.36 and a 52-week high of $84.88. The company has a current ratio of 4.67, a quick ratio of 2.28 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.03. The firm has a 50-day moving average price of $76.81 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $76.93. The firm has a market cap of $46.43 billion, a P/E ratio of 40.29, a PEG ratio of 3.58 and a beta of 1.05.

Fastenal's stock is scheduled to split on the morning of Thursday, May 22nd. The 2-1 split was announced on Wednesday, April 23rd. The newly created shares will be issued to shareholders after the market closes on Wednesday, May 21st.

Fastenal (NASDAQ:FAST - Get Free Report) last issued its earnings results on Friday, April 11th. The company reported $0.52 EPS for the quarter, meeting analysts' consensus estimates of $0.52. The business had revenue of $1.96 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $1.94 billion. Fastenal had a net margin of 15.25% and a return on equity of 32.55%. The business's revenue for the quarter was up 3.4% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter last year, the firm posted $0.52 EPS. On average, research analysts anticipate that Fastenal will post 2.15 earnings per share for the current year.

Fastenal Increases Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, May 23rd. Investors of record on Friday, April 25th will be paid a dividend of $0.44 per share. This is an increase from Fastenal's previous quarterly dividend of $0.43. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, April 25th. This represents a $1.76 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.17%. Fastenal's payout ratio is 87.56%.

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.