Fastenal (NASDAQ:FAST) Stock Price Up 6.1% After Better-Than-Expected Earnings

Fastenal Company (NASDAQ:FAST - Get Free Report)'s share price rose 6.1% during trading on Monday after the company announced better than expected quarterly earnings. The company traded as high as $45.79 and last traded at $45.93. Approximately 3,512,538 shares traded hands during trading, a decline of 41% from the average daily volume of 5,984,212 shares. The stock had previously closed at $43.27.

The company reported $0.29 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts' consensus estimates of $0.28 by $0.01. The firm had revenue of $2.08 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $2.07 billion. Fastenal had a return on equity of 32.33% and a net margin of 15.30%. The business's quarterly revenue was up 8.6% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the previous year, the firm earned $0.25 EPS.

Fastenal Cuts Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, August 26th. Investors of record on Tuesday, July 29th will be issued a $0.22 dividend. This represents a $0.88 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.93%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Tuesday, July 29th. Fastenal's dividend payout ratio is currently 84.62%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several brokerages have recently commented on FAST. Wolfe Research restated a "positive" rating on shares of Fastenal in a research report on Monday. Morgan Stanley set a $40.00 target price on Fastenal and gave the company an "equal weight" rating in a research note on Thursday, July 3rd. JPMorgan Chase & Co. boosted their price target on Fastenal from $38.00 to $41.00 and gave the stock a "neutral" rating in a report on Tuesday. Stephens upped their price target on Fastenal from $40.00 to $45.00 and gave the stock an "equal weight" rating in a research note on Tuesday. Finally, Loop Capital reiterated a "hold" rating on shares of Fastenal in a research report on Tuesday. One research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, eight have assigned a hold rating and three have assigned a buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company presently has an average rating of "Hold" and a consensus price target of $45.64.

Insider Buying and Selling at Fastenal

In related news, EVP John Lewis Soderberg sold 32,724 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction on Friday, May 16th. The stock was sold at an average price of $41.23, for a total value of $1,349,046.90. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this link. Also, EVP Anthony Paul Broersma sold 11,136 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction dated Friday, April 25th. The stock was sold at an average price of $40.60, for a total transaction of $452,065.92. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last three months, insiders have sold 163,200 shares of company stock worth $6,675,975. Company insiders own 0.37% of the company's stock.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

A number of hedge funds have recently modified their holdings of FAST. Brighton Jones LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Fastenal in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $496,000. Proficio Capital Partners LLC bought a new position in shares of Fastenal in the 4th quarter worth $409,000. Corient Private Wealth LLC lifted its stake in shares of Fastenal by 242.1% during the 4th quarter. Corient Private Wealth LLC now owns 388,595 shares of the company's stock worth $27,943,000 after purchasing an additional 274,988 shares during the last quarter. Harbour Investments Inc. boosted its position in Fastenal by 16.1% during the fourth quarter. Harbour Investments Inc. now owns 16,231 shares of the company's stock valued at $1,167,000 after purchasing an additional 2,251 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Cibc World Markets Corp grew its stake in Fastenal by 14.3% in the fourth quarter. Cibc World Markets Corp now owns 103,083 shares of the company's stock valued at $7,413,000 after purchasing an additional 12,861 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors own 81.38% of the company's stock.

Fastenal Price Performance

The stock's fifty day simple moving average is $41.82 and its 200 day simple moving average is $39.33. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.03, a current ratio of 4.22 and a quick ratio of 2.14. The firm has a market capitalization of $52.37 billion, a P/E ratio of 43.88, a P/E/G ratio of 4.15 and a beta of 0.96.

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.