Fastenal Company $FAST Shares Acquired by Access Financial Services Inc.

Key Points

• Access Financial Services Inc. increased its stake in Fastenal Company by 98.9%, owning a total of 13,884 shares valued at approximately $583,000 according to a recent SEC filing.
• Several institutional investors have also significantly raised their positions in Fastenal during the second quarter, with ownership now at 81.38% among institutional and hedge fund investors.
• Fastenal's quarterly earnings surpassed expectations, reporting $0.29 EPS, up from $0.25 EPS year-over-year, along with a revenue increase of 8.6% to $2.08 billion.

Access Financial Services Inc. lifted its position in shares of Fastenal Company (NASDAQ:FAST - Free Report) by 98.9% during the second quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 13,884 shares of the company's stock after purchasing an additional 6,903 shares during the period. Access Financial Services Inc.'s holdings in Fastenal were worth $583,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other institutional investors have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Armstrong Advisory Group Inc. raised its position in shares of Fastenal by 100.0% in the 2nd quarter. Armstrong Advisory Group Inc. now owns 696 shares of the company's stock valued at $29,000 after purchasing an additional 348 shares in the last quarter. AdvisorNet Financial Inc raised its holdings in Fastenal by 95.0% in the second quarter. AdvisorNet Financial Inc now owns 702 shares of the company's stock valued at $29,000 after acquiring an additional 342 shares in the last quarter. Clean Yield Group raised its holdings in Fastenal by 100.0% in the second quarter. Clean Yield Group now owns 696 shares of the company's stock valued at $29,000 after acquiring an additional 348 shares in the last quarter. Garde Capital Inc. raised its holdings in Fastenal by 4,900.0% in the second quarter. Garde Capital Inc. now owns 750 shares of the company's stock valued at $32,000 after acquiring an additional 735 shares in the last quarter. Finally, SJS Investment Consulting Inc. raised its holdings in Fastenal by 86.3% in the second quarter. SJS Investment Consulting Inc. now owns 842 shares of the company's stock valued at $35,000 after acquiring an additional 390 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 81.38% of the company's stock.

Insider Buying and Selling at Fastenal

In other Fastenal news, insider Jeffery Michael Watts sold 48,724 shares of the firm'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 value of $2,341,188.20. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider directly owned 11,880 shares in the company, valued at $570,834. This trade represents a 80.40% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this link. Also, CFO Sheryl Ann Lisowski sold 21,052 shares of the business's stock in a transaction on Thursday, July 17th. The shares were sold at an average price of $45.21, for a total value of $951,760.92. Following the completion of the sale, the chief financial officer owned 10,192 shares of the company's stock, valued at $460,780.32. This trade represents a 67.38% 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 worth $5,288,364 in the last three months. 0.37% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Fastenal Stock Down 2.7%

FAST stock opened at $47.72 on Thursday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.03, a current ratio of 4.22 and a quick ratio of 2.12. Fastenal Company has a 52-week low of $34.69 and a 52-week high of $50.63. The company has a 50-day moving average of $48.18 and a two-hundred day moving average of $43.42. The stock has a market capitalization of $54.77 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 45.89, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 4.46 and a beta of 0.94.

Fastenal (NASDAQ:FAST - Get Free Report) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Monday, July 14th. The company reported $0.29 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates 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 during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $2.07 billion. During the same quarter last year, the company earned $0.25 EPS. The company's quarterly revenue was up 8.6% on a year-over-year basis. As a group, equities research analysts anticipate that Fastenal Company will post 2.15 EPS for the current year.

Fastenal Cuts Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, August 26th. Stockholders 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 1.8%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Tuesday, July 29th. Fastenal's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 84.62%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several equities research analysts recently issued reports on the company. Robert W. Baird raised Fastenal from a "neutral" rating to an "outperform" rating and upped their price target for the company from $47.00 to $55.00 in a research report on Thursday, August 7th. Northcoast Research assumed coverage on shares of Fastenal in a report on Thursday, August 21st. They set a "neutral" rating on the stock. Stifel Nicolaus set a $82.00 price target on Fastenal in a research report on Thursday, July 3rd. Loop Capital reaffirmed a "hold" rating on shares of Fastenal in a report on Tuesday, July 15th. Finally, Wolfe Research restated a "positive" rating on shares of Fastenal in a research report on Monday, July 14th. One analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, four have assigned a Buy rating, eight have issued a Hold rating and one has given a Sell rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company currently has a consensus rating of "Hold" and an average target price of $46.82.

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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