Fastenal Company $FAST Shares Sold by Wilkins Investment Counsel Inc.

Key Points

• Wilkins Investment Counsel reduced its stake in Fastenal by 14.4%, selling 28,005 shares and holding 166,855 shares worth about $6.70 million per its latest 13F filing.
• Director Reyne K. Wisecup sold 36,920 shares at an average price of $47.34 on March 5, cutting their ownership by 48% to 40,000 shares.
• Fastenal reported quarterly $0.30 EPS (in line with estimates) and $2.20 billion in revenue (+12.4% YoY), and announced a quarterly dividend of $0.24 per share (annualized yield ~2.1%).

Wilkins Investment Counsel Inc. reduced its stake in shares of Fastenal Company (NASDAQ:FAST - Free Report) by 14.4% during the 4th quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm owned 166,855 shares of the company's stock after selling 28,005 shares during the quarter. Wilkins Investment Counsel Inc.'s holdings in Fastenal were worth $6,696,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the stock. Vanguard Group Inc. grew its position in Fastenal by 1.6% during the third quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 151,515,539 shares of the company's stock worth $7,430,322,000 after buying an additional 2,346,045 shares during the period. Invesco Ltd. grew its position in shares of Fastenal by 14.0% in the third quarter. Invesco Ltd. now owns 18,215,875 shares of the company's stock valued at $893,307,000 after purchasing an additional 2,242,116 shares during the last quarter. Bank of America Corp DE grew its position in shares of Fastenal by 1.1% in the third quarter. Bank of America Corp DE now owns 15,604,974 shares of the company's stock valued at $765,268,000 after purchasing an additional 173,581 shares during the last quarter. MIRAE ASSET GLOBAL ETFS HOLDINGS Ltd. grew its position in shares of Fastenal by 0.3% in the third quarter. MIRAE ASSET GLOBAL ETFS HOLDINGS Ltd. now owns 8,276,145 shares of the company's stock valued at $405,860,000 after purchasing an additional 26,702 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Franklin Resources Inc. grew its position in shares of Fastenal by 1.2% in the third quarter. Franklin Resources Inc. now owns 7,387,472 shares of the company's stock valued at $362,282,000 after purchasing an additional 90,095 shares during the last quarter. 81.38% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Insider Transactions at Fastenal

In related news, Director Reyne K. Wisecup sold 36,920 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, March 5th. The shares were sold at an average price of $47.34, for a total transaction of $1,747,792.80. Following the sale, the director owned 40,000 shares in the company, valued at approximately $1,893,600. This trade represents a 48.00% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. Company insiders own 0.28% of the company's stock.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several analysts have recently commented on the stock. Weiss Ratings reiterated a "buy (b-)" rating on shares of Fastenal in a research report on Friday, March 27th. Raymond James Financial set a $48.00 price target on shares of Fastenal in a research report on Thursday, March 5th. Robert W. Baird lowered their price target on shares of Fastenal from $52.00 to $50.00 and set an "outperform" rating on the stock in a research report on Tuesday, April 14th. Benchmark reiterated a "buy" rating on shares of Fastenal in a research report on Thursday, March 5th. Finally, UBS Group reiterated a "neutral" rating and issued a $46.00 price target on shares of Fastenal in a research report on Wednesday, January 21st. Five research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, six have assigned a Hold rating and two have assigned a Sell rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company currently has an average rating of "Hold" and an average price target of $49.77.

Fastenal Stock Down 0.0%

Shares of NASDAQ FAST opened at $44.91 on Friday. Fastenal Company has a 1 year low of $38.97 and a 1 year high of $50.63. The firm's 50 day moving average price is $45.70 and its 200 day moving average price is $43.56. The firm has a market cap of $51.56 billion, a P/E ratio of 39.40, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.86 and a beta of 0.75. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.03, a quick ratio of 2.34 and a current ratio of 4.39.

Fastenal (NASDAQ:FAST - Get Free Report) last announced its earnings results on Monday, April 13th. The company reported $0.30 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, hitting analysts' consensus estimates of $0.30. Fastenal had a net margin of 15.39% and a return on equity of 33.25%. The firm had revenue of $2.20 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $2.19 billion. During the same quarter last year, the business earned $0.52 earnings per share. Fastenal's revenue was up 12.4% compared to the same quarter last year. As a group, sell-side analysts anticipate that Fastenal Company will post 1.23 earnings per share for the current year.

Fastenal Dividend Announcement

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, May 26th. Investors of record on Tuesday, April 28th will be given a dividend of $0.24 per share. The ex-dividend date is Tuesday, April 28th. This represents a $0.96 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 2.1%. Fastenal's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 84.21%.

Fastenal Profile

Fastenal NASDAQ: FAST is a wholesale distributor of industrial and construction supplies, best known for its broad assortment of fasteners such as bolts, nuts, screws and anchors. Founded in Winona, Minnesota, Fastenal has grown from a regional supplier into a national and international distributor serving a wide range of end markets, including manufacturing, construction, maintenance, repair and operations (MRO), and government customers. The company is publicly traded and operates through a network of locally staffed branches combined with national distribution capabilities.

Product offerings extend beyond fasteners to include tools, safety and personal protective equipment, power transmission components, cutting and welding supplies, janitorial and material handling items, and other industrial consumables.

This instant news alert was generated by narrative science technology and financial data from MarketBeat in order to provide readers with the fastest reporting and unbiased coverage. Please send any questions or comments about this story to contact@marketbeat.com.