Fastenal Company $FAST Shares Acquired by Matrix Trust Co

Key Points

• Matrix Trust Co increased its stake in Fastenal Company by 106.1% during the second quarter, now holding 48,806 shares valued at $2,050,000.
• Fastenal reported $0.29 earnings per share for the last quarter, beating analyst expectations of $0.28, with revenue climbing 8.6% year-over-year to $2.08 billion.
• Despite the positive earnings, Fastenal recently cut its dividend to $0.22 per share, representing an annual yield of 1.8% with a payout ratio of 84.62%.

Matrix Trust Co grew its stake in Fastenal Company (NASDAQ:FAST - Free Report) by 106.1% in the 2nd quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm owned 48,806 shares of the company's stock after buying an additional 25,123 shares during the quarter. Matrix Trust Co's holdings in Fastenal were worth $2,050,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other institutional investors and hedge funds have also modified their holdings of the company. 1248 Management LLC acquired a new position in shares of Fastenal in the 1st quarter valued at about $36,000. Horizon Financial Services LLC raised its holdings in Fastenal by 5,330.0% in the 1st quarter. Horizon Financial Services LLC now owns 543 shares of the company's stock worth $42,000 after purchasing an additional 533 shares during the period. Zions Bancorporation National Association UT acquired a new position in Fastenal in the 1st quarter worth about $49,000. TruNorth Capital Management LLC acquired a new position in Fastenal in the 1st quarter worth about $57,000. Finally, Golden State Wealth Management LLC raised its holdings in shares of Fastenal by 5,661.5% during the first quarter. Golden State Wealth Management LLC now owns 749 shares of the company's stock valued at $58,000 after acquiring an additional 736 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 81.38% of the company's stock.

Insider Transactions at Fastenal

In other news, insider Jeffery Michael Watts sold 48,724 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction on Friday, August 8th. The stock was sold at an average price of $48.05, for a total transaction of $2,341,188.20. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider directly owned 11,880 shares in the company, valued at $570,834. This trade represents a 80.40% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available at the SEC website. Also, EVP William Joseph Drazkowski sold 6,842 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction on Friday, August 15th. The stock was sold at an average price of $48.67, for a total value of $333,000.14. Following the transaction, the executive vice president owned 11,994 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $583,747.98. This represents a 36.32% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last ninety days, insiders have sold 111,230 shares of company stock valued at $5,288,364. Corporate insiders own 0.37% of the company's stock.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of equities analysts have commented on the company. Stifel Nicolaus set a $82.00 target price on Fastenal in a report on Thursday, July 3rd. JPMorgan Chase & Co. increased their target price on Fastenal from $41.00 to $46.00 and gave the company a "neutral" rating in a report on Thursday, September 4th. Baird R W raised Fastenal from a "hold" rating to a "strong-buy" rating in a report on Thursday, August 7th. Loop Capital reissued a "hold" rating on shares of Fastenal in a report on Tuesday, July 15th. Finally, Robert W. Baird raised Fastenal from a "neutral" rating to an "outperform" rating and increased their target price for the company from $47.00 to $55.00 in a report on Thursday, August 7th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, four have assigned a Buy rating, eight have assigned a Hold rating and one has given a Sell rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, Fastenal currently has an average rating of "Hold" and a consensus target price of $46.82.

Fastenal Trading Down 1.0%

Fastenal stock traded down $0.46 during mid-day trading on Monday, hitting $47.12. The company's stock had a trading volume of 5,785,110 shares, compared to its average volume of 6,551,939. The firm has a market capitalization of $54.08 billion, a PE ratio of 45.31, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 4.33 and a beta of 0.97. Fastenal Company has a 1 year low of $34.69 and a 1 year high of $50.63. The company has a current ratio of 4.22, a quick ratio of 2.12 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.03. The stock's fifty day moving average is $47.89 and its two-hundred day moving average is $43.00.

Fastenal (NASDAQ:FAST - Get Free Report) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Monday, July 14th. The company reported $0.29 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $0.28 by $0.01. The company had revenue of $2.08 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $2.07 billion. Fastenal had a return on equity of 32.33% and a net margin of 15.30%.The firm's revenue for the quarter was up 8.6% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the prior year, the business posted $0.25 earnings per share. On average, analysts anticipate that Fastenal Company will post 2.15 EPS for the current year.

Fastenal Cuts Dividend

The company also recently declared 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. This represents a $0.88 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.9%. The ex-dividend date was Tuesday, July 29th. Fastenal's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 84.62%.

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.