Fastenal (NASDAQ:FAST) PT Lowered to $66.00 at Loop Capital

Fastenal (NASDAQ:FAST - Get Free Report) had its target price dropped by investment analysts at Loop Capital from $71.00 to $66.00 in a report issued on Monday, Benzinga reports. The brokerage currently has a "hold" rating on the stock. Loop Capital's target price suggests a potential downside of 4.89% from the stock's current price.

Several other equities analysts also recently commented on the company. HSBC increased their price target on Fastenal from $59.00 to $64.00 and gave the company a "hold" rating in a report on Monday. Stifel Nicolaus raised their target price on shares of Fastenal from $75.00 to $85.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a research note on Monday, March 18th. Finally, Robert W. Baird cut their target price on shares of Fastenal from $77.00 to $71.00 and set a "neutral" rating for the company in a research report on Friday. Five analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and one has issued a buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, the company has an average rating of "Hold" and a consensus target price of $67.67.

Fastenal Stock Down 1.5 %

Shares of FAST stock traded down $1.06 on Monday, hitting $69.39. The company's stock had a trading volume of 4,439,417 shares, compared to its average volume of 4,074,303. The stock has a market capitalization of $39.71 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 34.51, a P/E/G ratio of 3.64 and a beta of 1.05. Fastenal has a fifty-two week low of $52.28 and a fifty-two week high of $79.04. The firm's fifty day moving average price is $73.74 and its 200-day moving average price is $65.98. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.06, a current ratio of 4.83 and a quick ratio of 2.49.

Fastenal (NASDAQ:FAST - Get Free Report) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, April 11th. The company reported $0.52 earnings per share for the quarter, missing analysts' consensus estimates of $0.53 by ($0.01). The company had revenue of $1.90 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $1.91 billion. Fastenal had a return on equity of 33.98% and a net margin of 15.68%. Fastenal's quarterly revenue was up 1.9% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the prior year, the firm earned $0.52 EPS. Research analysts anticipate that Fastenal will post 2.15 EPS for the current year.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other news, insider William Joseph Drazkowski sold 11,968 shares of the company's stock in a transaction dated Thursday, January 25th. The shares were sold at an average price of $69.10, for a total transaction of $826,988.80. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider now owns 5,997 shares of the company's stock, valued at $414,392.70. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this link. In other Fastenal news, Director Reyne K. Wisecup sold 34,042 shares of Fastenal stock in a transaction on Friday, January 19th. The shares were sold at an average price of $68.48, for a total transaction of $2,331,196.16. Following the sale, the director now owns 20,000 shares in the company, valued at $1,369,600. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this link. Also, insider William Joseph Drazkowski sold 11,968 shares of the stock in a transaction on Thursday, January 25th. The shares were sold at an average price of $69.10, for a total transaction of $826,988.80. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider now owns 5,997 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $414,392.70. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold 105,682 shares of company stock worth $7,375,853 in the last ninety days. Insiders own 0.41% of the company's stock.

Institutional Trading of Fastenal

Several institutional investors have recently made changes to their positions in the business. Norges Bank bought a new position in Fastenal during the fourth quarter worth about $405,513,000. Confluence Investment Management LLC bought a new position in shares of Fastenal during the 1st quarter worth approximately $195,459,000. Morgan Stanley boosted its stake in Fastenal by 37.8% in the 4th quarter. Morgan Stanley now owns 9,092,207 shares of the company's stock valued at $430,243,000 after buying an additional 2,492,722 shares in the last quarter. Goldman Sachs Group Inc. raised its stake in Fastenal by 38.0% during the fourth quarter. Goldman Sachs Group Inc. now owns 6,060,126 shares of the company's stock worth $392,514,000 after acquiring an additional 1,668,988 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Envestnet Asset Management Inc. raised its stake in Fastenal by 47.3% during the third quarter. Envestnet Asset Management Inc. now owns 4,691,506 shares of the company's stock worth $256,344,000 after acquiring an additional 1,505,936 shares in the last quarter. 81.38% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

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.