DAVENPORT & Co LLC Increases Holdings in Fastenal Company $FAST

Key Points

• DAVENPORT & Co LLC significantly increased its stake in Fastenal Company by 90.8% during the second quarter, acquiring a total of 50,952 shares valued at approximately $2.14 million.
• Fastenal reported a quarterly revenue increase of 8.6% year-over-year, reaching $2.08 billion, and exceeded the consensus EPS estimate by 1 cent.
• A majority of Fastenal's stock, 81.38%, is owned by hedge funds and institutional investors, reflecting a strong institutional interest in the company.

DAVENPORT & Co LLC lifted its position in Fastenal Company (NASDAQ:FAST - Free Report) by 90.8% in the 2nd quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The fund owned 50,952 shares of the company's stock after purchasing an additional 24,251 shares during the quarter. DAVENPORT & Co LLC's holdings in Fastenal were worth $2,140,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other institutional investors have also recently modified their holdings of FAST. Brighton Jones LLC purchased a new position in shares of Fastenal in the fourth quarter worth about $496,000. Miracle Mile Advisors LLC purchased a new position in shares of Fastenal in the first quarter worth about $215,000. Capital Investment Advisors LLC raised its stake in shares of Fastenal by 14.6% in the first quarter. Capital Investment Advisors LLC now owns 3,525 shares of the company's stock worth $273,000 after purchasing an additional 449 shares during the last quarter. Farther Finance Advisors LLC raised its stake in shares of Fastenal by 103.5% in the first quarter. Farther Finance Advisors LLC now owns 14,564 shares of the company's stock worth $1,130,000 after purchasing an additional 7,407 shares during the last quarter. Finally, GAMMA Investing LLC raised its stake in shares of Fastenal by 11.4% in the first quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC now owns 21,847 shares of the company's stock worth $1,694,000 after purchasing an additional 2,240 shares during the last quarter. 81.38% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Fastenal Stock Down 1.8%

Shares of FAST opened at $46.71 on Friday. 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 Company has a 12 month low of $34.94 and a 12 month high of $50.63. The stock's 50 day moving average is $48.25 and its two-hundred day moving average is $43.82. The firm has a market cap of $53.61 billion, a P/E ratio of 44.91, a PEG ratio of 4.31 and a beta of 0.94.

Fastenal (NASDAQ:FAST - Get Free Report) last issued its quarterly earnings data 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 return on equity of 32.33% and a net margin of 15.30%.The company had revenue of $2.08 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $2.07 billion. During the same period last year, the company earned $0.25 earnings per share. Fastenal's quarterly revenue was up 8.6% compared to the same quarter last year. Analysts predict that Fastenal Company will post 2.15 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

FAST has been the subject of several recent research reports. Morgan Stanley set a $40.00 price target on Fastenal and gave the company an "equal weight" rating in a research report on Thursday, July 3rd. Wolfe Research reiterated a "positive" rating on shares of Fastenal in a research report on Monday, July 14th. Northcoast Research initiated coverage on Fastenal in a research report on Thursday, August 21st. They set a "neutral" rating for the company. Barclays initiated coverage on Fastenal in a research report on Tuesday. They set a "positive" rating and a $49.00 price target for the company. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. lifted their price target on Fastenal from $41.00 to $46.00 and gave the company a "neutral" rating in a research report on Thursday, September 4th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, four have given a Buy rating, nine have given a Hold rating and one has issued a Sell rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has an average rating of "Hold" and a consensus price target of $47.41.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other news, EVP William Joseph Drazkowski sold 6,842 shares of Fastenal stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, August 15th. The stock was sold at an average price of $48.67, for a total value of $333,000.14. Following the sale, the executive vice president directly owned 11,994 shares of the company's stock, valued at $583,747.98. The trade was a 36.32% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available at this link. Also, insider Jeffery Michael Watts sold 48,724 shares of Fastenal stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, August 8th. The stock was sold at an average price of $48.05, for a total value of $2,341,188.20. Following the completion of the sale, the insider directly owned 11,880 shares in the company, valued at $570,834. This represents a 80.40% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold a total of 111,230 shares of company stock valued at $5,288,364 in the last three months. 0.37% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

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.

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