NorthCrest Asset Manangement LLC Buys 13,424 Shares of Fastenal Company $FAST

Key Points

• NorthCrest Asset Management LLC increased its holdings in Fastenal Company by 120.1% in the 2nd quarter, bringing its total to 24,601 shares valued at approximately $1.06 million.
• Several hedge funds have also significantly increased their investments in Fastenal, with GAMMA Investing LLC boosting its stake by an astonishing 8,541.0% in the last quarter.
• Fastenal recently cut its dividend to $0.22, translating to an annual yield of 1.8%, with a current payout ratio of 84.62%.

NorthCrest Asset Manangement LLC lifted its holdings in Fastenal Company (NASDAQ:FAST - Free Report) by 120.1% during the second quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 24,601 shares of the company's stock after purchasing an additional 13,424 shares during the quarter. NorthCrest Asset Manangement LLC's holdings in Fastenal were worth $1,061,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other institutional investors have also made changes to their positions in the business. Community Trust & Investment Co. increased its holdings in Fastenal by 100.0% during the second quarter. Community Trust & Investment Co. now owns 13,664 shares of the company's stock worth $574,000 after buying an additional 6,832 shares during the last quarter. Wealth Enhancement Advisory Services LLC increased its holdings in Fastenal by 134.6% during the second quarter. Wealth Enhancement Advisory Services LLC now owns 855,561 shares of the company's stock worth $36,900,000 after buying an additional 490,867 shares during the last quarter. Longboard Asset Management LP acquired a new position in Fastenal during the second quarter worth $203,000. Bath Savings Trust Co increased its holdings in Fastenal by 96.6% during the second quarter. Bath Savings Trust Co now owns 11,418 shares of the company's stock worth $480,000 after buying an additional 5,609 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Mn Services Vermogensbeheer B.V. increased its holdings in Fastenal by 102.9% during the second quarter. Mn Services Vermogensbeheer B.V. now owns 429,512 shares of the company's stock worth $18,040,000 after buying an additional 217,856 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors own 81.38% of the company's stock.

Insider Activity

In related news, 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 transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this link. Also, EVP William Joseph Drazkowski sold 6,842 shares of the company's stock in a transaction dated Friday, August 15th. The stock was sold at an average price of $48.67, for a total transaction of $333,000.14. Following the sale, the executive vice president directly owned 11,994 shares of the company's stock, valued at $583,747.98. This represents a 36.32% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last three months, insiders sold 111,230 shares of company stock worth $5,288,364. 0.37% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

Fastenal Stock Performance

Shares of FAST stock traded up $0.36 on Friday, hitting $47.58. The company's stock had a trading volume of 13,747,553 shares, compared to its average volume of 5,443,559. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.03, a quick ratio of 2.12 and a current ratio of 4.22. The stock's 50 day moving average is $47.84 and its 200-day moving average is $42.93. Fastenal Company has a fifty-two week low of $34.69 and a fifty-two week high of $50.63. The company has a market capitalization of $54.60 billion, a PE ratio of 45.75, a PEG ratio of 4.33 and a beta of 0.97.

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 business had revenue of $2.08 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $2.07 billion. During the same period in the prior year, the company posted $0.25 earnings per share. Fastenal's revenue was up 8.6% compared to the same quarter last year. Equities research analysts expect that Fastenal Company will post 2.15 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Fastenal Cuts Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, August 26th. Investors 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 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.8%. Fastenal's dividend payout ratio is currently 84.62%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

FAST has been the topic of a number of recent analyst reports. Northcoast Research initiated coverage on shares of Fastenal in a report on Thursday, August 21st. They set a "neutral" rating 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 restated a "positive" rating on shares of Fastenal in a report on Monday, July 14th. Morgan Stanley set a $40.00 target price on shares of Fastenal and gave the stock an "equal weight" rating in a report on Thursday, July 3rd. Finally, Stifel Nicolaus set a $82.00 price objective on shares of Fastenal in a report on Thursday, July 3rd. One 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 issued a Sell rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has a consensus rating of "Hold" and an average target price of $46.82.

About Fastenal

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.