Bath Savings Trust Co Boosts Stock Holdings in Fastenal Company $FAST

Key Points

• Bath Savings Trust Co increased its holdings in Fastenal Company by 96.6% during the second quarter, owning a total of 11,418 shares valued at $480,000.
• Fastenal reported earnings of $0.29 per share, exceeding analyst projections, and experienced an 8.6% year-over-year revenue increase to $2.08 billion.
• The company recently cut its quarterly dividend to $0.22 per share, representing a 1.9% dividend yield with a payout ratio of 84.62%.

Bath Savings Trust Co raised its holdings in shares of Fastenal Company (NASDAQ:FAST - Free Report) by 96.6% in the 2nd quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The fund owned 11,418 shares of the company's stock after purchasing an additional 5,609 shares during the quarter. Bath Savings Trust Co's holdings in Fastenal were worth $480,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission.

Other institutional investors have also bought and sold shares of the company. Garde Capital Inc. lifted its position in Fastenal by 4,900.0% during the second quarter. Garde Capital Inc. now owns 750 shares of the company's stock valued at $32,000 after purchasing an additional 735 shares during the last quarter. 1248 Management LLC bought a new position in Fastenal during the first quarter valued at $36,000. Horizon Financial Services LLC lifted 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 during the last quarter. Zions Bancorporation National Association UT bought a new position in Fastenal during the first quarter valued at $49,000. Finally, TruNorth Capital Management LLC bought a new position in Fastenal during the first quarter valued at $57,000. Institutional investors own 81.38% of the company's stock.

Fastenal Trading Down 0.3%

NASDAQ:FAST opened at $47.12 on Thursday. Fastenal Company has a one year low of $34.69 and a one year high of $50.63. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.03, a quick ratio of 2.12 and a current ratio of 4.22. The firm has a market cap of $54.08 billion, a P/E ratio of 45.31, a P/E/G ratio of 4.30 and a beta of 0.97. The firm has a 50-day simple moving average of $47.69 and a 200-day simple moving average of $42.75.

Fastenal (NASDAQ:FAST - Get Free Report) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Monday, July 14th. The company reported $0.29 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $0.28 by $0.01. Fastenal had a net margin of 15.30% and a return on equity of 32.33%. The business had revenue of $2.08 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $2.07 billion. During the same quarter in the previous year, the business posted $0.25 EPS. The company's quarterly revenue was up 8.6% compared to the same quarter last year. Equities analysts anticipate that Fastenal Company will post 2.15 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Fastenal Cuts Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, August 26th. Investors of record on Tuesday, July 29th were paid a dividend of $0.22 per share. This represents a $0.88 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.9%. The ex-dividend date was Tuesday, July 29th. Fastenal's payout ratio is 84.62%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several research firms have commented on FAST. Baird R W upgraded shares of Fastenal from a "hold" rating to a "strong-buy" rating in a research report on Thursday, August 7th. Loop Capital restated a "hold" rating on shares of Fastenal in a report on Tuesday, July 15th. Stifel Nicolaus set a $82.00 target price on shares of Fastenal in a report on Thursday, July 3rd. Stephens raised their target price on shares of Fastenal from $40.00 to $45.00 and gave the stock an "equal weight" rating in a report on Tuesday, July 15th. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. raised their target price on shares of Fastenal from $41.00 to $46.00 and gave the stock a "neutral" rating in a report on Thursday, September 4th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, four have issued a Buy rating, eight have given a Hold rating and one has given a Sell rating to the company's stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company currently has a consensus rating of "Hold" and an average price target of $46.82.

Insider Activity

In related news, EVP John Lewis Soderberg sold 34,612 shares of the business's stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, August 8th. The shares were sold at an average price of $48.03, for a total transaction of $1,662,414.36. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through the SEC website. Also, EVP William Joseph Drazkowski sold 6,842 shares of the business's stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, August 15th. The stock was sold at an average price of $48.67, for a total transaction of $333,000.14. Following the transaction, the executive vice president owned 11,994 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $583,747.98. This trade represents a 36.32% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last 90 days, insiders have sold 111,230 shares of company stock worth $5,288,364. Insiders own 0.37% of the company's stock.

Fastenal 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.

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