Sandy Cove Advisors LLC Has $1.04 Million Stock Holdings in Fastenal Company $FAST

Key Points

• Sandy Cove Advisors LLC increased its stake in Fastenal Company by 104.9% during Q2, holding 24,784 shares valued at approximately $1.04 million.
• Fastenal reported earnings of $0.29 per share for the last quarter, slightly exceeding analysts' estimates and showing an 8.6% year-over-year revenue increase.
• The company declared a quarterly dividend of $0.22 per share, representing an annualized yield of 1.8% and a payout ratio of 84.62%.

Sandy Cove Advisors LLC grew its stake in shares of Fastenal Company (NASDAQ:FAST - Free Report) by 104.9% during the 2nd quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The fund owned 24,784 shares of the company's stock after purchasing an additional 12,690 shares during the quarter. Sandy Cove Advisors LLC's holdings in Fastenal were worth $1,041,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other institutional investors have also recently made changes to their positions in the stock. Oregon Public Employees Retirement Fund grew its stake in Fastenal by 0.3% in the 1st quarter. Oregon Public Employees Retirement Fund now owns 49,219 shares of the company's stock valued at $3,817,000 after purchasing an additional 130 shares during the period. Welch & Forbes LLC grew its stake in Fastenal by 0.4% in the 1st quarter. Welch & Forbes LLC now owns 32,992 shares of the company's stock valued at $2,559,000 after purchasing an additional 135 shares during the period. Principal Securities Inc. grew its stake in Fastenal by 0.9% in the 1st quarter. Principal Securities Inc. now owns 15,886 shares of the company's stock valued at $1,142,000 after purchasing an additional 140 shares during the period. Salvus Wealth Management LLC grew its stake in Fastenal by 1.6% in the 1st quarter. Salvus Wealth Management LLC now owns 9,000 shares of the company's stock valued at $698,000 after purchasing an additional 141 shares during the period. Finally, Essex Financial Services Inc. grew its stake in Fastenal by 1.7% in the 1st quarter. Essex Financial Services Inc. now owns 8,870 shares of the company's stock valued at $688,000 after purchasing an additional 147 shares during the period. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 81.38% of the company's stock.

Fastenal Stock Performance

Shares of FAST opened at $47.76 on Tuesday. The stock's 50-day simple moving average is $47.52 and its 200 day simple moving average is $42.68. The stock has a market capitalization of $54.81 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 45.92, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 4.32 and a beta of 0.97. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.03, a quick ratio of 2.12 and a current ratio of 4.22. 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 issued its quarterly earnings data on Monday, July 14th. The company reported $0.29 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates of $0.28 by $0.01. The business had revenue of $2.08 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $2.07 billion. Fastenal had a return on equity of 32.33% and a net margin of 15.30%.The firm's quarterly revenue was up 8.6% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm posted $0.25 EPS. Research analysts forecast that Fastenal Company will post 2.15 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Fastenal Cuts Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, August 26th. Shareholders of record on Tuesday, July 29th were issued a $0.22 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Tuesday, July 29th. This represents a $0.88 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.8%. Fastenal's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 84.62%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of research analysts have issued reports on FAST shares. Morgan Stanley set a $40.00 price objective on Fastenal and gave the company an "equal weight" rating in a research note on Thursday, July 3rd. Wolfe Research reiterated a "positive" rating on shares of Fastenal in a research note on Monday, July 14th. Baird R W upgraded Fastenal from a "hold" rating to a "strong-buy" rating in a research note on Thursday, August 7th. Stephens increased their price target on Fastenal from $40.00 to $45.00 and gave the stock an "equal weight" rating in a research note on Tuesday, July 15th. Finally, Stifel Nicolaus set a $82.00 price target on Fastenal in a research note on Thursday, July 3rd. One equities research 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 assigned a Sell rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock has a consensus rating of "Hold" and an average price target of $46.82.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other news, EVP William Joseph Drazkowski sold 6,842 shares of the 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 transaction, the executive vice president directly owned 11,994 shares in the company, valued at approximately $583,747.98. This represents a 36.32% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this link. Also, EVP John Lewis Soderberg sold 34,612 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Friday, August 8th. The shares were sold at an average price of $48.03, for a total value of $1,662,414.36. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last quarter, insiders sold 111,230 shares of company stock worth $5,288,364. 0.37% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

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.

Want to see what other hedge funds are holding FAST? Visit HoldingsChannel.com to get the latest 13F filings and insider trades for Fastenal Company (NASDAQ:FAST - Free Report).

This instant news alert was generated by narrative science technology and financial data from MarketBeat in order to provide readers with the fastest and most accurate reporting. This story was reviewed by MarketBeat's editorial team prior to publication. Please send any questions or comments about this story to contact@marketbeat.com.