Kovitz Investment Group Partners LLC Increases Stake in Fastenal Company $FAST

Key Points

• Kovitz Investment Group Partners LLC increased its stake in Fastenal Company (NASDAQ:FAST) by 63.3%, bringing its total holdings to 17,835 shares valued at approximately $1.38 million.
• Several institutional investors have significantly raised their stakes in Fastenal, including Horizon Financial Services, which increased its stake by 5,330%, now owning 543 shares worth $42,000.
• Fastenal reported a quarterly earnings per share (EPS) of $0.29, beating the consensus estimate of $0.28, with a revenue increase of 8.6% year-over-year.

Kovitz Investment Group Partners LLC increased its holdings in shares of Fastenal Company (NASDAQ:FAST - Free Report) by 63.3% during the 1st quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm owned 17,835 shares of the company's stock after buying an additional 6,915 shares during the period. Kovitz Investment Group Partners LLC's holdings in Fastenal were worth $1,383,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other large investors have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Brighton Jones LLC acquired a new position in Fastenal during the 4th quarter worth approximately $496,000. Forum Financial Management LP grew its holdings in Fastenal by 24.0% during the 4th quarter. Forum Financial Management LP now owns 3,908 shares of the company's stock worth $281,000 after acquiring an additional 757 shares in the last quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP grew its holdings in Fastenal by 1.4% during the 4th quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP now owns 3,829,635 shares of the company's stock worth $275,393,000 after acquiring an additional 51,534 shares in the last quarter. BI Asset Management Fondsmaeglerselskab A S grew its holdings in Fastenal by 216.5% during the 4th quarter. BI Asset Management Fondsmaeglerselskab A S now owns 26,843 shares of the company's stock worth $1,930,000 after acquiring an additional 18,361 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Natixis grew its holdings in Fastenal by 948.8% during the 4th quarter. Natixis now owns 95,926 shares of the company's stock worth $6,898,000 after acquiring an additional 86,780 shares in the last quarter. 81.38% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several research analysts have commented on FAST shares. Northcoast Research started coverage on shares of Fastenal in a report on Thursday. They set a "neutral" rating for the company. Stifel Nicolaus set a $82.00 price target on shares of Fastenal in a report on Thursday, July 3rd. Wolfe Research restated a "positive" rating on shares of Fastenal in a report on Monday, July 14th. Loop Capital restated a "hold" rating on shares of Fastenal in a report on Tuesday, July 15th. Finally, Stephens upped their target price on shares of Fastenal from $40.00 to $45.00 and gave the company an "equal weight" rating in a report on Tuesday, July 15th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, four have assigned a Buy rating, eight have given a Hold rating and one has given a Sell rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has a consensus rating of "Hold" and an average target price of $46.36.

Fastenal Stock Up 2.5%

Shares of Fastenal stock traded up $1.25 during trading hours on Friday, hitting $50.39. The company had a trading volume of 5,442,493 shares, compared to its average volume of 5,864,219. The company's 50-day moving average is $45.26 and its two-hundred day moving average is $41.32. Fastenal Company has a twelve month low of $32.04 and a twelve month high of $50.60. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.03, a current ratio of 4.22 and a quick ratio of 2.12. The company has a market cap of $57.83 billion, a P/E ratio of 48.45, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 4.47 and a beta of 0.95.

Fastenal (NASDAQ:FAST - Get Free Report) last released its quarterly earnings results on Monday, July 14th. The company reported $0.29 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $0.28 by $0.01. Fastenal had a net margin of 15.30% and a return on equity of 32.33%. The firm had revenue of $2.08 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $2.07 billion. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm earned $0.25 EPS. Fastenal's revenue for the quarter was up 8.6% on a year-over-year basis. Analysts anticipate that Fastenal Company will post 2.15 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Fastenal Cuts Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, August 26th. Investors of record on Tuesday, July 29th will be given a $0.22 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Tuesday, July 29th. This represents a $0.88 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.7%. Fastenal's dividend payout ratio is 84.62%.

Insider Buying and Selling at Fastenal

In related news, EVP John Lewis Soderberg sold 34,612 shares of the company's stock in a transaction on Friday, August 8th. The shares were sold at an average price of $48.03, for a total value of $1,662,414.36. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through the SEC website. Also, CFO Sheryl Ann Lisowski sold 21,052 shares of the company's stock in a transaction on 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 sale, the chief financial officer owned 10,192 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $460,780.32. This trade represents a 67.38% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold 111,230 shares of company stock worth $5,288,364 in the last 90 days. Company insiders own 0.37% of the company's stock.

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.