Brokerages Set Fastenal Company (NASDAQ:FAST) Price Target at $48.45

Shares of Fastenal Company (NASDAQ:FAST - Get Free Report) have been assigned an average recommendation of "Hold" from the twelve analysts that are currently covering the stock, MarketBeat Ratings reports. One research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, nine have issued a hold rating and two have issued a buy rating on the company. The average 12 month target price among brokerages that have issued ratings on the stock in the last year is $48.45.

Several equities analysts have commented on the stock. Robert W. Baird set a $86.00 target price on shares of Fastenal in a research note on Thursday, July 3rd. JPMorgan Chase & Co. lifted their price objective on shares of Fastenal from $36.00 to $38.00 and gave the stock a "neutral" rating in a research note on Tuesday, May 27th. Morgan Stanley set a $40.00 price objective on shares of Fastenal and gave the stock an "equal weight" rating in a research note on Thursday, July 3rd. Loop Capital raised their target price on shares of Fastenal from $40.00 to $45.00 and gave the stock a "hold" rating in a report on Tuesday. Finally, Stephens reiterated an "equal weight" rating on shares of Fastenal in a report on Thursday, July 3rd.

Fastenal Stock Performance

Shares of Fastenal stock traded up $0.56 during trading on Wednesday, hitting $43.40. 6,852,947 shares of the stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 6,032,243. The stock's fifty day moving average is $41.33 and its 200 day moving average is $39.05. The stock has a market cap of $49.79 billion, a PE ratio of 43.18, a P/E/G ratio of 3.93 and a beta of 0.96. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.03, a quick ratio of 2.14 and a current ratio of 4.28. Fastenal has a 12 month low of $31.02 and a 12 month high of $43.48.

Fastenal (NASDAQ:FAST - Get Free Report) last announced its earnings results on Friday, April 11th. The company reported $0.26 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, meeting analysts' consensus estimates of $0.26. The firm had revenue of $1.96 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $1.94 billion. Fastenal had a net margin of 15.13% and a return on equity of 31.99%. Fastenal's revenue was up 3.4% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm posted $0.26 EPS. As a group, sell-side analysts anticipate 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, May 23rd. Stockholders of record on Friday, April 25th were issued a $0.44 dividend. This is a positive change from Fastenal's previous quarterly dividend of $0.43. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, April 25th. This represents a $1.76 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 4.06%. Fastenal's dividend payout ratio is presently 88.00%.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other news, EVP Anthony Paul Broersma sold 11,136 shares of the company's stock in a transaction dated Friday, April 25th. The shares were sold at an average price of $40.60, for a total value of $452,065.92. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available at this hyperlink. Also, Director Scott Satterlee sold 19,340 shares of the company's stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, May 6th. The stock was sold at an average price of $39.76, for a total transaction of $768,861.70. Following the completion of the sale, the director directly owned 50,000 shares in the company, valued at approximately $1,987,750. The trade was a 27.89% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold 193,200 shares of company stock worth $7,895,625 in the last quarter. 0.37% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

A number of large investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the business. Garde Capital Inc. raised its position in shares of Fastenal by 4,900.0% in the 2nd quarter. Garde Capital Inc. now owns 750 shares of the company's stock valued at $32,000 after acquiring an additional 735 shares during the period. 1248 Management LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Fastenal in the 1st quarter valued at approximately $36,000. Horizon Financial Services LLC raised its position in shares of Fastenal by 5,330.0% in the 1st quarter. Horizon Financial Services LLC now owns 543 shares of the company's stock valued at $42,000 after acquiring an additional 533 shares during the period. Itau Unibanco Holding S.A. raised its position in shares of Fastenal by 481.9% in the 4th quarter. Itau Unibanco Holding S.A. now owns 611 shares of the company's stock valued at $44,000 after acquiring an additional 506 shares during the period. Finally, OFI Invest Asset Management acquired a new stake in shares of Fastenal in the 4th quarter valued at approximately $46,000. 81.38% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

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.