Fastenal Company $FAST Stock Position Reduced by Investment House LLC

Key Points

• Investment House LLC cut its Fastenal position by 77.2% in the third quarter, selling 59,471 shares and retaining 17,535 shares valued at approximately $869,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds collectively own 81.38% of the company.
• Fastenal reported quarterly EPS of $0.35, slightly above estimates, while revenue rose 15.5% year over year to $2.46 billion. The company also declared a quarterly dividend of $0.26, representing a 2.0% annualized yield.
• Analyst sentiment remains mixed, with a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $51.46; FAST opened at $51.91, near its 52-week high of $52.92.

Investment House LLC reduced its holdings in Fastenal Company (NASDAQ:FAST - Free Report) by 77.2% during the 3rd quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund owned 17,535 shares of the company's stock after selling 59,471 shares during the period. Investment House LLC's holdings in Fastenal were worth $869,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently made changes to their positions in the business. Vest Financial LLC raised its holdings in shares of Fastenal by 1.7% during the third quarter. Vest Financial LLC now owns 1,081,024 shares of the company's stock worth $53,543,000 after purchasing an additional 18,475 shares during the last quarter. Axxcess Wealth Management LLC lifted its position in Fastenal by 86.5% during the third quarter. Axxcess Wealth Management LLC now owns 12,511 shares of the company's stock valued at $620,000 after purchasing an additional 5,804 shares during the period. Sawyer & Company Inc acquired a new position in Fastenal during the third quarter valued at $777,000. Quadrant Capital Group LLC boosted its holdings in Fastenal by 3.5% in the third quarter. Quadrant Capital Group LLC now owns 26,292 shares of the company's stock valued at $1,352,000 after purchasing an additional 884 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Capstone Capital Management Ltd boosted its holdings in Fastenal by 17.6% in the third quarter. Capstone Capital Management Ltd now owns 19,934 shares of the company's stock valued at $987,000 after purchasing an additional 2,983 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 81.38% of the company's stock.

Insider Activity

In related news, Director Michael Ancius sold 3,000 shares of the company's stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, July 28th. The stock was sold at an average price of $49.00, for a total value of $147,000.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the director owned 58,690 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $2,875,810. This represents a 4.86% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. Also, Director Rita J. Heise sold 34,964 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, August 5th. The stock was sold at an average price of $50.05, for a total value of $1,749,948.20. Following the transaction, the director owned 20,000 shares in the company, valued at $1,001,000. This represents a 63.61% decrease in their position. Additional details regarding this sale are available in the official SEC disclosure. 0.28% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Analyst Ratings Changes

FAST has been the topic of several analyst reports. Sanford C. Bernstein reaffirmed an "underperform" rating and set a $47.00 price target (up from $42.00) on shares of Fastenal in a research report on Thursday, October 15th. Morgan Stanley boosted their price objective on Fastenal from $48.00 to $52.00 and gave the company an "equal weight" rating in a report on Thursday, July 16th. Barclays lowered their target price on Fastenal from $47.00 to $46.00 and set an "equal weight" rating on the stock in a research note on Thursday, July 16th. Rothschild & Co Redburn set a $55.00 target price on Fastenal and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a report on Monday, July 13th. Finally, Robert W. Baird lifted their price target on Fastenal from $59.00 to $60.00 and gave the company an "outperform" rating in a research report on Thursday, October 15th. Seven analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, five have assigned a Hold rating and two have issued a Sell rating to the company's stock. According to MarketBeat, Fastenal has a consensus rating of "Hold" and a consensus target price of $51.46.

Fastenal Stock Down 1.6%

FAST stock opened at $51.91 on Friday. Fastenal Company has a one year low of $38.97 and a one year high of $52.92. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.01, a quick ratio of 2.11 and a current ratio of 3.93. The firm's fifty day moving average is $50.36 and its 200 day moving average is $47.73. The firm has a market cap of $59.56 billion, a PE ratio of 41.86, a P/E/G ratio of 3.16 and a beta of 0.69.

Fastenal (NASDAQ:FAST - Get Free Report) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, October 14th. The company reported $0.35 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates of $0.34 by $0.01. Fastenal had a net margin of 15.62% and a return on equity of 35.13%. The business had revenue of $2.46 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $2.44 billion. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm posted $0.29 earnings per share. The company's revenue was up 15.5% compared to the same quarter last year. On average, research analysts forecast that Fastenal Company will post 1.27 EPS for the current year.

Fastenal Announces Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, November 25th. Investors of record on Wednesday, October 28th will be paid a $0.26 dividend. This represents a $1.04 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 2.0%. The ex-dividend date is Wednesday, October 28th. Fastenal's payout ratio is currently 83.87%.

Fastenal Company Profile

Fastenal Company is a distributor of industrial and construction supplies headquartered in Winona, Minnesota. Founded in 1967, the company primarily serves businesses that require products for manufacturing, construction, maintenance, repair and operations.

Its product range includes threaded fasteners, bolts, nuts, screws, industrial and safety supplies, tools, electrical and plumbing products, material-handling equipment, and other related items. Fastenal also provides inventory-management solutions, including automated vending machines, customer-specific inventory programs and onsite services designed to improve product availability and purchasing efficiency.

Fastenal serves customers through a network of locations and sales channels across the United States, Canada, Mexico, Europe and parts of Asia.

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