Fastenal Company $FAST Stake Lowered by Raymond James Financial Inc.

Key Points

• Raymond James Financial Inc. reduced its holdings in Fastenal Company by 7.1%, ending the first quarter with approximately 1.31 million shares worth about $101.36 million.
• Fastenal reported earnings of $0.29 per share for the latest quarter, beating analysts' expectations, with a year-over-year revenue increase of 8.6% to $2.08 billion.
• The company recently announced a quarterly dividend of $0.22 per share, resulting in an annualized yield of 1.8%, despite a high dividend payout ratio of 84.62%.

Raymond James Financial Inc. lessened its holdings in shares of Fastenal Company (NASDAQ:FAST - Free Report) by 7.1% during the first quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm owned 1,307,080 shares of the company's stock after selling 99,990 shares during the quarter. Raymond James Financial Inc. owned approximately 0.23% of Fastenal worth $101,363,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other large investors also recently made changes to their positions in the company. Horizon Financial Services LLC lifted its stake in shares of Fastenal by 5,330.0% during 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. Itau Unibanco Holding S.A. raised its position in shares of Fastenal by 481.9% in the 4th quarter. Itau Unibanco Holding S.A. now owns 611 shares of the company's stock worth $44,000 after buying an additional 506 shares during the period. Zions Bancorporation National Association UT purchased a new position in shares of Fastenal in the 1st quarter worth $49,000. TruNorth Capital Management LLC purchased a new position in shares of Fastenal in the 1st quarter worth $57,000. Finally, Golden State Wealth Management LLC raised its position in shares of Fastenal by 5,661.5% in the 1st quarter. Golden State Wealth Management LLC now owns 749 shares of the company's stock worth $58,000 after buying an additional 736 shares during the period. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 81.38% of the company's stock.

Insider Transactions at Fastenal

In other Fastenal news, EVP William Joseph Drazkowski sold 6,842 shares of the company'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 transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Also, CFO Sheryl Ann Lisowski sold 21,052 shares of Fastenal stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, July 17th. The stock was sold at an average price of $45.21, for a total transaction of $951,760.92. Following the transaction, the chief financial officer 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 disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold 111,230 shares of company stock worth $5,288,364 in the last three months. 0.37% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Fastenal Stock Performance

FAST stock traded up $1.25 during midday trading on Friday, reaching $50.39. The company had a trading volume of 5,442,493 shares, compared to its average volume of 5,864,219. 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 stock has a 50 day moving average price of $45.26 and a 200 day moving average price of $41.32. Fastenal Company has a fifty-two week low of $32.04 and a fifty-two week high of $50.60. The firm has a market capitalization of $57.83 billion, a PE ratio of 48.45, a P/E/G ratio of 4.47 and a beta of 0.95.

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

Fastenal Cuts Dividend

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

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several brokerages recently weighed in on FAST. Wolfe Research reaffirmed a "positive" rating on shares of Fastenal in a research report on Monday, July 14th. Stephens increased their target price on Fastenal from $40.00 to $45.00 and gave the stock an "equal weight" rating in a research report on Tuesday, July 15th. 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. Stifel Nicolaus set a $82.00 target price on Fastenal in a research report on Thursday, July 3rd. Finally, Northcoast Research started coverage on Fastenal in a research report on Thursday. They issued a "neutral" rating on the stock. One research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, four have issued a Buy rating, eight have assigned a Hold rating and one has given a Sell rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock currently has an average rating of "Hold" and an average target price of $46.36.

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.