Fastenal (NASDAQ:FAST) Stock Price Crosses Above 200-Day Moving Average - What's Next?

Fastenal (NASDAQ:FAST - Get Free Report)'s stock price crossed above its 200-day moving average during trading on Friday . The stock has a 200-day moving average of $77.23 and traded as high as $82.36. Fastenal shares last traded at $82.12, with a volume of 2,679,279 shares.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

FAST has been the topic of a number of recent research reports. Stephens lifted their price objective on shares of Fastenal from $75.00 to $80.00 and gave the company an "equal weight" rating in a report on Tuesday, April 15th. Wolfe Research upgraded shares of Fastenal from an "underperform" rating to a "peer perform" rating in a research note on Thursday, April 3rd. William Blair upgraded Fastenal from a "market perform" rating to an "outperform" rating in a report on Monday, March 10th. Robert W. Baird raised their price target on Fastenal from $80.00 to $86.00 and gave the company a "neutral" rating in a research note on Monday, April 14th. Finally, Stifel Nicolaus cut their price objective on Fastenal from $86.00 to $82.00 and set a "hold" rating for the company in a report on Tuesday, January 21st. One investment 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's stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has an average rating of "Hold" and an average target price of $79.10.

Fastenal Price Performance

The business has a 50-day moving average price of $77.68 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $77.25. The company has a quick ratio of 2.28, a current ratio of 4.67 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.03. The company has a market capitalization of $47.28 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 41.01, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 3.58 and a beta of 1.01.

Shares of Fastenal are set to split before the market opens on Thursday, May 22nd. The 2-1 split was announced on Wednesday, April 23rd. The newly minted shares will be payable to shareholders after the market closes on Wednesday, May 21st.

Fastenal (NASDAQ:FAST - Get Free Report) last announced its earnings results on Friday, April 11th. The company reported $0.52 EPS for the quarter, meeting the consensus estimate of $0.52. The company had revenue of $1.96 billion during 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 firm's revenue for the quarter was up 3.4% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the prior year, the company posted $0.52 earnings per share. As a group, research analysts anticipate that Fastenal will post 2.15 EPS for the current year.

Fastenal Increases Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, May 23rd. Stockholders of record on Friday, April 25th will be given a dividend of $0.44 per share. This represents a $1.76 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 2.14%. The ex-dividend date is Friday, April 25th. This is a boost from Fastenal's previous quarterly dividend of $0.43. Fastenal's dividend payout ratio is currently 87.56%.

Insider Activity at Fastenal

In other Fastenal news, CEO Daniel L. Florness sold 50,000 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction dated Thursday, April 24th. The stock was sold at an average price of $82.12, for a total value of $4,106,000.00. Following the sale, the chief executive officer now owns 282,518 shares of the company's stock, valued at $23,200,378.16. This trade represents a 15.04 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available at this link. Also, EVP Anthony Paul Broersma sold 5,568 shares of Fastenal stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, April 25th. The shares were sold at an average price of $81.19, for a total transaction of $452,065.92. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last three months, insiders have sold 70,568 shares of company stock worth $5,777,716. Company insiders own 0.37% of the company's stock.

Institutional Trading of Fastenal

Hedge funds have recently made changes to their positions in the stock. Horizon Financial Services LLC raised its position in Fastenal by 5,330.0% during the first quarter. Horizon Financial Services LLC now owns 543 shares of the company's stock valued at $42,000 after purchasing an additional 533 shares in the last quarter. Itau Unibanco Holding S.A. raised its holdings in shares of Fastenal by 481.9% during the 4th quarter. Itau Unibanco Holding S.A. now owns 611 shares of the company's stock valued at $44,000 after buying an additional 506 shares in the last quarter. OFI Invest Asset Management purchased a new stake in Fastenal in the fourth quarter worth approximately $46,000. Whipplewood Advisors LLC purchased a new stake in Fastenal in the fourth quarter worth approximately $49,000. Finally, SBI Securities Co. Ltd. bought a new position in Fastenal during the fourth quarter valued at approximately $49,000. 81.38% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

About Fastenal

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.