Berger Financial Group Inc Lowers Stock Position in Fastenal Company (NASDAQ:FAST)

Key Points

• Berger Financial Group Inc has dramatically reduced its stake in Fastenal Company by 88.4%, selling 68,112 shares, leaving it with 8,906 shares valued at approximately $691,000.
• Several other institutional investors have increased their holdings in Fastenal recently, with notable increases from Picton Mahoney Asset Management (7.5%) and Raiffeisen Bank International AG (21.5%).
• Fastenal recently reported a quarterly earnings beat with an EPS of $0.29, surpassing estimates, and saw revenue growth of 8.6% year-over-year, reaching $2.08 billion.

Berger Financial Group Inc lessened its stake in shares of Fastenal Company (NASDAQ:FAST - Free Report) by 88.4% in the first quarter, according to its most recent filing with the SEC. The fund owned 8,906 shares of the company's stock after selling 68,112 shares during the period. Berger Financial Group Inc's holdings in Fastenal were worth $691,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other large investors also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Oregon Public Employees Retirement Fund increased its holdings in shares of Fastenal by 0.3% during the first quarter. Oregon Public Employees Retirement Fund now owns 49,219 shares of the company's stock worth $3,817,000 after buying an additional 130 shares in the last quarter. Anchor Investment Management LLC grew its holdings in Fastenal by 3.4% during the 4th quarter. Anchor Investment Management LLC now owns 4,134 shares of the company's stock worth $297,000 after acquiring an additional 135 shares during the period. Welch & Forbes LLC grew its holdings in Fastenal by 0.4% during the 1st quarter. Welch & Forbes LLC now owns 32,992 shares of the company's stock worth $2,559,000 after acquiring an additional 135 shares during the period. Principal Securities Inc. boosted its position in shares of Fastenal by 0.9% during the first quarter. Principal Securities Inc. now owns 15,886 shares of the company's stock worth $1,142,000 after purchasing an additional 140 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Salvus Wealth Management LLC boosted its position in shares of Fastenal by 1.6% during the first quarter. Salvus Wealth Management LLC now owns 9,000 shares of the company's stock worth $698,000 after purchasing an additional 141 shares in the last quarter. 81.38% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Fastenal Stock Performance

Shares of Fastenal stock traded up $0.76 during trading on Wednesday, hitting $49.21. 4,825,750 shares of the stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 6,633,781. The stock has a market capitalization of $56.48 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 47.32, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 4.36 and a beta of 0.95. The company has a fifty day moving average price of $44.10 and a 200-day moving average price of $40.67. Fastenal Company has a 1-year low of $32.04 and a 1-year high of $49.26. The company has a current ratio of 4.22, a quick ratio of 2.12 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.03.

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

Fastenal Cuts Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, August 26th. Shareholders of record on Tuesday, July 29th will be issued a $0.22 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Tuesday, July 29th. This represents a $0.88 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.8%. Fastenal's payout ratio is currently 84.62%.

Insider Buying and Selling at Fastenal

In other news, EVP John Lewis Soderberg sold 34,612 shares of the company'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 sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through the SEC website. Also, insider Jeffery Michael Watts sold 48,724 shares of the company's stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, August 8th. The stock was sold at an average price of $48.05, for a total transaction of $2,341,188.20. Following the sale, the insider directly owned 11,880 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $570,834. This trade represents a 80.40% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold 137,112 shares of company stock valued at $6,304,410 in the last quarter. Company insiders own 0.37% of the company's stock.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several equities research analysts recently commented on FAST shares. Morgan Stanley set a $40.00 price objective on shares of Fastenal and gave the company an "equal weight" rating in a research report on Thursday, July 3rd. Wolfe Research reaffirmed a "positive" rating on shares of Fastenal in a research report on Monday, July 14th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. boosted their price objective on shares of Fastenal from $38.00 to $41.00 and gave the company a "neutral" rating in a research report on Tuesday, July 15th. Baird R W raised shares of Fastenal from a "hold" rating to a "strong-buy" rating in a research report on Thursday, August 7th. Finally, Stephens boosted their price objective on shares of Fastenal from $40.00 to $45.00 and gave the company an "equal weight" rating in a research report on Tuesday, July 15th. One analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, seven have issued a hold rating, four have issued a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, Fastenal has a consensus rating of "Hold" and an average target price of $46.36.

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.