Paradiem LLC Acquires 112,061 Shares of Fastenal Company $FAST

Key Points

• Paradiem LLC increased its holdings in Fastenal by 67.3% during the second quarter, acquiring an additional 112,061 shares to reach a total of 278,478 shares.
• Fastenal reported earnings of $0.29 EPS for the last quarter, surpassing analysts' expectations by $0.01, with revenue rising 8.6% year-over-year.
• Several institutional investors, including Park Place Capital Corp and Janney Montgomery Scott LLC, significantly increased their stakes in Fastenal during the same period, reflecting increased institutional interest in the company.

Paradiem LLC increased its holdings in Fastenal Company (NASDAQ:FAST - Free Report) by 67.3% in the 2nd quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor owned 278,478 shares of the company's stock after acquiring an additional 112,061 shares during the quarter. Fastenal comprises about 3.0% of Paradiem LLC's investment portfolio, making the stock its 11th biggest holding. Paradiem LLC's holdings in Fastenal were worth $11,696,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other institutional investors also recently modified their holdings of the business. Park Place Capital Corp increased its stake in shares of Fastenal by 3,304.4% in the 2nd quarter. Park Place Capital Corp now owns 1,532 shares of the company's stock worth $66,000 after acquiring an additional 1,487 shares in the last quarter. Greenleaf Trust increased its stake in Fastenal by 93.5% during the 2nd quarter. Greenleaf Trust now owns 78,984 shares of the company's stock valued at $3,317,000 after purchasing an additional 38,155 shares in the last quarter. Capital Investment Advisors LLC increased its stake in Fastenal by 113.4% during the 2nd quarter. Capital Investment Advisors LLC now owns 7,524 shares of the company's stock valued at $316,000 after purchasing an additional 3,999 shares in the last quarter. HB Wealth Management LLC increased its stake in Fastenal by 39.6% during the 2nd quarter. HB Wealth Management LLC now owns 76,083 shares of the company's stock valued at $3,195,000 after purchasing an additional 21,565 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Janney Montgomery Scott LLC increased its stake in Fastenal by 183.1% during the 2nd quarter. Janney Montgomery Scott LLC now owns 762,906 shares of the company's stock valued at $32,042,000 after purchasing an additional 493,395 shares in the last quarter. 81.38% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Fastenal Stock Performance

Shares of NASDAQ FAST opened at $48.87 on Tuesday. The firm's 50-day moving average price is $48.13 and its 200-day moving average price is $43.35. The company has a quick ratio of 2.12, a current ratio of 4.22 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.03. The company has a market cap of $56.09 billion, a PE ratio of 46.99, a PEG ratio of 4.43 and a beta of 0.97. Fastenal Company has a 52-week low of $34.69 and a 52-week high of $50.63.

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

Fastenal Cuts Dividend

The firm also recently announced 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. This represents a $0.88 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.8%. The ex-dividend date was Tuesday, July 29th. Fastenal's payout ratio is 84.62%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of analysts have weighed in on the stock. Wolfe Research restated a "positive" rating on shares of Fastenal in a research note on Monday, July 14th. Robert W. Baird upgraded shares of Fastenal from a "neutral" rating to an "outperform" rating and raised their price objective for the company from $47.00 to $55.00 in a research note on Thursday, August 7th. Loop Capital restated a "hold" rating on shares of Fastenal in a research note on Tuesday, July 15th. Baird R W upgraded shares of Fastenal from a "hold" rating to a "strong-buy" rating in a research note on Thursday, August 7th. Finally, Stifel Nicolaus set a $82.00 price objective on shares of Fastenal in a research note on Thursday, July 3rd. 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 stock. According to MarketBeat, Fastenal currently has an average rating of "Hold" and a consensus target price of $46.82.

Insider Buying and Selling at Fastenal

In related news, CFO Sheryl Ann Lisowski sold 21,052 shares of the business's stock in a transaction that occurred 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 directly owned 10,192 shares in the company, valued at approximately $460,780.32. The trade was a 67.38% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which can be accessed 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 shares were sold at an average price of $48.03, for a total transaction of $1,662,414.36. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last three months, insiders have sold 111,230 shares of company stock valued at $5,288,364. 0.37% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

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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