FSM Wealth Advisors LLC Purchases New Position in Fastenal Company $FAST

FSM Wealth Advisors LLC bought a new position in Fastenal Company (NASDAQ:FAST - Free Report) in the 2nd quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor bought 8,304 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $353,000.

Other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Patton Fund Management Inc. purchased a new position in Fastenal in the second quarter valued at about $229,000. Values First Advisors Inc. increased its holdings in Fastenal by 183.0% during the 2nd quarter. Values First Advisors Inc. now owns 9,378 shares of the company's stock worth $394,000 after purchasing an additional 6,064 shares during the last quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. raised its position in shares of Fastenal by 8.9% in the 1st quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. now owns 22,615,915 shares of the company's stock valued at $1,753,864,000 after purchasing an additional 1,850,871 shares in the last quarter. Picton Mahoney Asset Management boosted its stake in shares of Fastenal by 7.5% during the 1st quarter. Picton Mahoney Asset Management now owns 181,482 shares of the company's stock valued at $14,074,000 after buying an additional 12,721 shares during the last quarter. Finally, KLP Kapitalforvaltning AS grew its position in shares of Fastenal by 3.9% during the first quarter. KLP Kapitalforvaltning AS now owns 195,748 shares of the company's stock worth $15,180,000 after buying an additional 7,400 shares in the last quarter. 81.38% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Fastenal Trading Up 0.9%

Shares of FAST stock opened at $42.99 on Friday. Fastenal Company has a 1 year low of $35.31 and a 1 year high of $50.63. The firm has a market capitalization of $49.35 billion, a PE ratio of 40.18, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 3.88 and a beta of 0.94. The stock has a fifty day moving average of $47.39 and a two-hundred day moving average of $44.14. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.03, a quick ratio of 2.19 and a current ratio of 4.26.

Fastenal (NASDAQ:FAST - Get Free Report) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Monday, October 13th. The company reported $0.29 earnings per share for the quarter, missing analysts' consensus estimates of $0.30 by ($0.01). The company had revenue of $2.13 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $2.13 billion. Fastenal had a net margin of 15.34% and a return on equity of 32.69%. Fastenal's revenue for the quarter was up 11.7% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm earned $0.26 earnings per share. As a group, research analysts expect that Fastenal Company will post 2.15 EPS for the current year.

Fastenal Dividend Announcement

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, November 25th. Stockholders of record on Tuesday, October 28th will be paid a $0.22 dividend. This represents a $0.88 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 2.0%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Tuesday, October 28th. Fastenal's dividend payout ratio is currently 82.24%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several analysts recently issued reports on the stock. Baird R W raised shares of Fastenal from a "hold" rating to a "strong-buy" rating in a report on Thursday, August 7th. Morgan Stanley set a $40.00 target price on Fastenal and gave the stock an "equal weight" rating in a research report on Thursday, July 3rd. Stephens raised their target price on Fastenal from $40.00 to $45.00 and gave the company an "equal weight" rating in a research note on Tuesday, July 15th. Barclays set a $45.00 price target on shares of Fastenal and gave the stock an "equal weight" rating in a research report on Tuesday, October 14th. Finally, Wolfe Research reaffirmed a "positive" rating on shares of Fastenal in a report on Monday, July 14th. One 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 data from MarketBeat.com, the company presently has an average rating of "Hold" and a consensus target price of $46.50.

Insider Activity at Fastenal

In related news, EVP William Joseph Drazkowski sold 6,842 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, August 15th. The shares were sold at an average price of $48.67, for a total transaction of $333,000.14. Following the transaction, the executive vice president owned 11,994 shares in the company, valued at $583,747.98. This trade represents a 36.32% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through the SEC website. Also, EVP John Lewis Soderberg sold 34,612 shares of the business's stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, August 8th. The stock was sold at an average price of $48.03, for a total value of $1,662,414.36. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last three months, insiders have sold 90,178 shares of company stock valued at $4,336,603. Insiders own 0.37% of the company's stock.

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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