Stock Yards Bank & Trust Co. Has $1.03 Million Stock Holdings in Fastenal Company $FAST

Key Points

• Stock Yards Bank & Trust Co. has increased its stake in Fastenal by 105.8% during Q2, now holding 24,402 shares valued at approximately $1.03 million.
• Company insiders, including the CFO, have recently sold significant shares, with a total of 111,230 shares sold worth over $5.2 million in the last ninety days.
• Fastenal's recent earnings report beat expectations, showing a revenue increase of 8.6% year-over-year, with an EPS of $0.29 against an estimate of $0.28.

Stock Yards Bank & Trust Co. lifted its stake in shares of Fastenal Company (NASDAQ:FAST - Free Report) by 105.8% during the second quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm owned 24,402 shares of the company's stock after purchasing an additional 12,542 shares during the period. Stock Yards Bank & Trust Co.'s holdings in Fastenal were worth $1,025,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently modified their holdings of the stock. Oregon Public Employees Retirement Fund raised its position in shares of Fastenal by 0.3% during the first quarter. Oregon Public Employees Retirement Fund now owns 49,219 shares of the company's stock worth $3,817,000 after purchasing an additional 130 shares during the period. Welch & Forbes LLC raised its position in shares of Fastenal by 0.4% during the first quarter. Welch & Forbes LLC now owns 32,992 shares of the company's stock worth $2,559,000 after purchasing an additional 135 shares during the period. Principal Securities Inc. raised its position in shares of Fastenal by 0.9% during the first quarter. Principal Securities Inc. now owns 15,886 shares of the company's stock worth $1,142,000 after purchasing an additional 140 shares during the period. Essex Financial Services Inc. grew its position in Fastenal by 1.7% during the 1st quarter. Essex Financial Services Inc. now owns 8,870 shares of the company's stock worth $688,000 after purchasing an additional 147 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Integrated Wealth Concepts LLC raised its stake in Fastenal by 2.4% during the 1st quarter. Integrated Wealth Concepts LLC now owns 6,276 shares of the company's stock valued at $487,000 after purchasing an additional 147 shares during the period. 81.38% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other news, CFO Sheryl Ann Lisowski sold 21,052 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction dated Thursday, July 17th. The stock was sold at an average price of $45.21, for a total value of $951,760.92. Following the sale, the chief financial officer directly owned 10,192 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $460,780.32. This trade represents a 67.38% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. Also, EVP John Lewis Soderberg sold 34,612 shares of the firm's 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 ninety days, insiders sold 111,230 shares of company stock valued at $5,288,364. 0.37% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

FAST has been the topic of several recent analyst reports. JPMorgan Chase & Co. boosted their target price on shares of Fastenal from $41.00 to $46.00 and gave the company a "neutral" rating in a research note on Thursday, September 4th. Stifel Nicolaus set a $82.00 target price on shares of Fastenal in a research note on Thursday, July 3rd. Northcoast Research initiated coverage on shares of Fastenal in a research note on Thursday, August 21st. They set a "neutral" rating on the stock. Baird R W raised shares of Fastenal from a "hold" rating to a "strong-buy" rating in a research note on Thursday, August 7th. Finally, Wolfe Research reissued a "positive" rating on shares of Fastenal in a research note on Monday, July 14th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, five have issued a Buy rating, eight have issued a Hold rating and one has assigned a Sell rating to the company's stock. According to MarketBeat, the stock currently has an average rating of "Hold" and an average price target of $46.82.

Fastenal Trading Down 0.6%

Shares of NASDAQ:FAST opened at $47.88 on Friday. The company has a market cap of $54.95 billion, a P/E ratio of 46.04, a P/E/G ratio of 4.34 and a beta of 0.94. The stock's 50-day moving average is $48.18 and its 200-day moving average is $43.60. Fastenal Company has a 52-week low of $34.69 and a 52-week high of $50.63. 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 (NASDAQ:FAST - Get Free Report) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Monday, July 14th. The company reported $0.29 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $0.28 by $0.01. The company had revenue of $2.08 billion for 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%.The firm's revenue was up 8.6% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period last year, the business posted $0.25 earnings per share. Equities research analysts predict that Fastenal Company will post 2.15 earnings per share for the current year.

Fastenal Cuts Dividend

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

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.

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