Fastenal (NASDAQ:FAST) Receives $79.10 Consensus Target Price from Analysts

Shares of Fastenal (NASDAQ:FAST - Get Free Report) have been given an average recommendation of "Hold" by the eleven analysts that are currently covering the stock, Marketbeat.com reports. One research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, eight have issued a hold rating and two have assigned a buy rating to the company. The average twelve-month price target among brokerages that have issued ratings on the stock in the last year is $39.75.

Several research analysts recently commented on FAST shares. Robert W. Baird raised their price target 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. Stephens raised their price target on shares of Fastenal from $37.50 to $40.00 and gave the stock an "equal weight" rating in a research note on Tuesday, April 15th. Morgan Stanley boosted their price target on Fastenal from $38.00 to $40.00 and gave the company an "equal weight" rating in a report on Friday. Wolfe Research upgraded Fastenal from an "underperform" rating to a "peer perform" rating in a report on Thursday, April 3rd. Finally, William Blair upgraded Fastenal from a "market perform" rating to an "outperform" rating in a report on Monday, March 10th.

Fastenal Trading Down 0.2%

Fastenal stock traded down $0.07 during midday trading on Tuesday, reaching $40.65. The stock had a trading volume of 3,872,195 shares, compared to its average volume of 6,188,346. The company has a quick ratio of 2.28, a current ratio of 4.67 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.03. Fastenal has a 52-week low of $30.68 and a 52-week high of $42.44. The firm has a market cap of $23.32 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 20.22, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 3.58 and a beta of 1.01. The company has a fifty day moving average of $39.49 and a 200 day moving average of $38.75.

Fastenal (NASDAQ:FAST - Get Free Report) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Friday, April 11th. The company reported $0.26 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, meeting analysts' consensus estimates of $0.26. Fastenal had a return on equity of 32.55% and a net margin of 15.25%. The company had revenue of $1.96 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $1.94 billion. During the same quarter in the previous year, the business earned $0.26 EPS. Fastenal's revenue was up 3.4% compared to the same quarter last year. On average, analysts anticipate that Fastenal will post 2.15 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Fastenal Increases Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, May 23rd. Stockholders of record on Friday, April 25th were issued a $0.44 dividend. The ex-dividend date was Friday, April 25th. This is an increase from Fastenal's previous quarterly dividend of $0.43. This represents a $1.76 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 4.33%. Fastenal's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 87.56%.

Insider Activity

In other Fastenal news, EVP William Joseph Drazkowski sold 30,000 shares of the stock in a transaction dated 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 completion of the sale, the executive vice president now directly owns 11,994 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $487,616.07. This represents a 71.44% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. Also, Director Scott Satterlee sold 19,340 shares of Fastenal stock in a transaction on 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 transaction, the director now directly owns 50,000 shares in the company, valued at $1,987,750. This represents a 27.89% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last three months, insiders have sold 193,200 shares of company stock worth $7,895,625. 0.37% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Fastenal

Hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the business. Vanguard Group Inc. grew its position in Fastenal by 1.4% during the 1st quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 73,317,271 shares of the company's stock worth $5,685,754,000 after purchasing an additional 1,016,479 shares during the last quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. grew its position in Fastenal by 8.9% during the 1st quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. now owns 22,615,915 shares of the company's stock worth $1,753,864,000 after purchasing an additional 1,850,871 shares during the last quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC grew its position in Fastenal by 1.4% during the 4th quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 16,918,464 shares of the company's stock worth $1,214,002,000 after purchasing an additional 234,713 shares during the last quarter. Baird Financial Group Inc. grew its position in Fastenal by 1.7% during the 1st quarter. Baird Financial Group Inc. now owns 8,418,765 shares of the company's stock worth $652,875,000 after purchasing an additional 142,972 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Northern Trust Corp grew its position in Fastenal by 15.2% during the 4th quarter. Northern Trust Corp now owns 7,322,739 shares of the company's stock worth $526,578,000 after purchasing an additional 966,629 shares during the last quarter. 81.38% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

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.