Fastenal Company $FAST Stake Boosted by KLP Kapitalforvaltning AS

KLP Kapitalforvaltning AS grew its stake in shares of Fastenal Company (NASDAQ:FAST - Free Report) by 111.2% during the 2nd quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 413,496 shares of the company's stock after acquiring an additional 217,748 shares during the period. KLP Kapitalforvaltning AS's holdings in Fastenal were worth $17,367,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other institutional investors and hedge funds have also modified their holdings of the company. Riverview Trust Co boosted its holdings in Fastenal by 100.0% in the second quarter. Riverview Trust Co now owns 584 shares of the company's stock worth $25,000 after purchasing an additional 292 shares in the last quarter. Hilltop National Bank bought a new stake in Fastenal in the second quarter worth $27,000. Armstrong Advisory Group Inc. boosted its holdings in Fastenal by 100.0% in the second quarter. Armstrong Advisory Group Inc. now owns 696 shares of the company's stock worth $29,000 after purchasing an additional 348 shares in the last quarter. AdvisorNet Financial Inc boosted its holdings in Fastenal by 95.0% in the second quarter. AdvisorNet Financial Inc now owns 702 shares of the company's stock worth $29,000 after purchasing an additional 342 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Clean Yield Group boosted its holdings in Fastenal by 100.0% in the second quarter. Clean Yield Group now owns 696 shares of the company's stock worth $29,000 after purchasing an additional 348 shares in the last quarter. 81.38% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Insider Activity at Fastenal

In other news, CFO Sheryl Ann Lisowski sold 21,052 shares of the company's stock in a transaction dated Thursday, July 17th. The shares were sold at an average price of $45.21, for a total transaction of $951,760.92. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief financial officer owned 10,192 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $460,780.32. This represents a 67.38% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through the SEC website. Also, EVP John Lewis Soderberg sold 34,612 shares of the company's stock in a transaction dated Friday, August 8th. The shares were sold at an average price of $48.03, for a total transaction of $1,662,414.36. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold a total of 111,230 shares of company stock worth $5,288,364 over the last ninety days. Corporate insiders own 0.37% of the company's stock.

Fastenal Stock Up 0.2%

FAST stock opened at $47.55 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 $48.24 and a two-hundred day moving average of $43.76. The stock has a market capitalization of $54.57 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 45.72, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 4.31 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, beating analysts' consensus estimates of $0.28 by $0.01. The business had revenue of $2.08 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $2.07 billion. Fastenal had a net margin of 15.30% and a return on equity of 32.33%. The firm's revenue for the quarter was up 8.6% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the prior year, the business earned $0.25 earnings per share. As a group, equities research analysts anticipate that Fastenal Company will post 2.15 EPS for the current year.

Fastenal Cuts Dividend

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

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of equities research analysts recently issued reports on the stock. Baird R W upgraded shares of Fastenal from a "hold" rating to a "strong-buy" rating in a report on Thursday, August 7th. Wolfe Research reiterated a "positive" rating on shares of Fastenal in a report on Monday, July 14th. Barclays assumed coverage on shares of Fastenal in a report on Tuesday. They issued a "positive" rating and a $49.00 price objective for the company. Stephens upped their price objective 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, Weiss Ratings restated a "buy (b)" rating on shares of Fastenal in a report on Wednesday. One analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, four have given a Buy rating, nine have assigned a Hold rating and one has given a Sell rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company presently has a consensus rating of "Hold" and an average price target of $47.41.

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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