Fastenal (NASDAQ:FAST) Stock Crosses Above 200 Day Moving Average - Here's Why

Fastenal (NASDAQ:FAST - Get Free Report)'s share price crossed above its two hundred day moving average during trading on Tuesday . The stock has a two hundred day moving average of $77.36 and traded as high as $80.73. Fastenal shares last traded at $79.97, with a volume of 3,290,533 shares.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

FAST has been the topic of several recent analyst reports. William Blair upgraded shares of Fastenal from a "market perform" rating to an "outperform" rating in a research note on Monday, March 10th. Robert W. Baird boosted their price objective on shares of Fastenal from $80.00 to $86.00 and gave the stock a "neutral" rating in a research note on Monday, April 14th. Stifel Nicolaus decreased their price target on shares of Fastenal from $86.00 to $82.00 and set a "hold" rating on the stock in a research note on Tuesday, January 21st. Stephens upped their price target on shares of Fastenal from $75.00 to $80.00 and gave the company an "equal weight" rating in a research note on Tuesday, April 15th. Finally, Wolfe Research upgraded shares of Fastenal from an "underperform" rating to a "peer perform" rating in a research note on Thursday, April 3rd. One analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, eight have assigned a hold rating and two have assigned a buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has an average rating of "Hold" and an average price target of $79.10.

Fastenal Stock Up 0.2%

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 $47.70 billion, a P/E ratio of 41.37, a P/E/G ratio of 3.58 and a beta of 1.01. The stock's fifty day simple moving average is $78.47 and its 200-day simple moving average is $77.48.

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

Fastenal (NASDAQ:FAST - Get Free Report) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Friday, April 11th. The company reported $0.52 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, meeting analysts' consensus estimates of $0.52. The firm 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 business's revenue for the quarter was up 3.4% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the previous year, the firm posted $0.52 EPS. As a group, research analysts forecast that Fastenal will post 2.15 earnings per share for the current fiscal 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 issued a dividend of $0.44 per share. This represents a $1.76 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 2.12%. The ex-dividend date is Friday, April 25th. This is an increase from Fastenal's previous quarterly dividend of $0.43. Fastenal's dividend payout ratio is 87.56%.

Insider Transactions at Fastenal

In other news, EVP Anthony Paul Broersma sold 5,568 shares of the company's 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 sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through the SEC website. Also, CEO Daniel L. Florness sold 50,000 shares of the company's stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, April 24th. The stock was sold at an average price of $82.12, for a total transaction of $4,106,000.00. Following the sale, the chief executive officer now directly owns 282,518 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $23,200,378.16. This trade represents a 15.04% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last 90 days, insiders sold 80,238 shares of company stock valued at $6,546,578. Company insiders own 0.37% of the company's stock.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Fastenal

Institutional investors and hedge funds have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the stock. 1248 Management LLC bought a new position in Fastenal in the 1st quarter valued at approximately $36,000. Horizon Financial Services LLC lifted its stake in 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 purchasing an additional 533 shares during the last quarter. Itau Unibanco Holding S.A. lifted its stake in 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 purchasing an additional 506 shares during the last quarter. OFI Invest Asset Management bought a new position in Fastenal in the 4th quarter valued at approximately $46,000. Finally, Whipplewood Advisors LLC bought a new position in Fastenal in the 4th quarter valued at approximately $49,000. Institutional investors own 81.38% of the company's stock.

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.