Fastenal (NASDAQ:FAST) Hits New 1-Year High - Here's Why

Fastenal (NASDAQ:FAST - Get Free Report)'s share price hit a new 52-week high during trading on Wednesday . The stock traded as high as $82.45 and last traded at $81.46, with a volume of 2197822 shares trading hands. The stock had previously closed at $81.92.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

FAST has been the subject of a number of research reports. Robert W. Baird upped their price objective on shares of Fastenal from $40.00 to $43.00 and gave the stock a "neutral" rating in a research note on Monday, April 14th. Wolfe Research upgraded shares of Fastenal from an "underperform" rating to a "peer perform" rating in a report on Thursday, April 3rd. JPMorgan Chase & Co. increased their price objective on shares of Fastenal from $36.00 to $38.00 and gave the company a "neutral" rating in a research note on Tuesday. Stephens lifted their price objective on shares of Fastenal from $37.50 to $40.00 and gave the company an "equal weight" rating in a report on Tuesday, April 15th. Finally, William Blair raised shares of Fastenal from a "market perform" rating to an "outperform" rating in a research note on Monday, March 10th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, eight have issued a hold rating and two have given a buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has an average rating of "Hold" and an average price target of $40.40.

Fastenal Stock Performance

The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.03, a quick ratio of 2.28 and a current ratio of 4.67. The stock has a market cap of $23.78 billion, a P/E ratio of 20.62, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 3.58 and a beta of 1.01. The firm's 50 day moving average is $39.54 and its 200 day moving average is $38.75.

Fastenal (NASDAQ:FAST - Get Free Report) last released its quarterly earnings results on Friday, April 11th. The company reported $0.26 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, hitting the consensus estimate of $0.26. The business had revenue of $1.96 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates 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% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the previous year, the company earned $0.26 earnings per share. Analysts anticipate that Fastenal will post 2.15 EPS for the current year.

Fastenal Increases Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, May 23rd. Investors of record on Friday, April 25th were paid a dividend of $0.44 per share. This represents a $1.76 annualized dividend and a yield of 4.25%. This is an increase from Fastenal's previous quarterly dividend of $0.43. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, April 25th. Fastenal's payout ratio is 87.56%.

Insider Buying and Selling at Fastenal

In other Fastenal news, EVP William Joseph Drazkowski sold 30,000 shares of the company's stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, April 14th. The shares were sold at an average price of $40.66, for a total transaction of $1,219,650.00. Following the transaction, the executive vice president now owns 11,994 shares in the company, valued at approximately $487,616.07. This represents a 71.44% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Also, EVP John Lewis Soderberg sold 32,724 shares of Fastenal stock in a transaction on Friday, May 16th. The stock was sold at an average price of $41.23, for a total transaction of $1,349,046.90. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last ninety days, insiders sold 193,200 shares of company stock worth $7,895,625. 0.37% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Institutional Trading of Fastenal

A number of institutional investors and hedge funds have recently added to or reduced their stakes in FAST. 1248 Management LLC purchased a new position in shares of Fastenal in the first quarter worth about $36,000. Horizon Financial Services LLC increased its holdings in Fastenal by 5,330.0% in the 1st quarter. Horizon Financial Services LLC now owns 543 shares of the company's stock worth $42,000 after buying an additional 533 shares during the period. Itau Unibanco Holding S.A. raised its position in Fastenal by 481.9% during the 4th quarter. Itau Unibanco Holding S.A. now owns 611 shares of the company's stock worth $44,000 after buying an additional 506 shares during the last quarter. Zions Bancorporation National Association UT purchased a new position in Fastenal during the 1st quarter worth approximately $49,000. Finally, OFI Invest Asset Management acquired a new stake in Fastenal during the 4th quarter valued at approximately $46,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 81.38% of the company's stock.

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.