Provident Trust Co. Has $174.38 Million Stock Position in Fastenal (NASDAQ:FAST)

Provident Trust Co. trimmed its position in shares of Fastenal (NASDAQ:FAST - Free Report) by 1.0% during the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm owned 2,692,319 shares of the company's stock after selling 27,105 shares during the quarter. Fastenal accounts for approximately 3.6% of Provident Trust Co.'s portfolio, making the stock its 12th largest holding. Provident Trust Co. owned about 0.47% of Fastenal worth $174,382,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other institutional investors and hedge funds have also made changes to their positions in the company. Russell Investments Group Ltd. grew its position in Fastenal by 28.3% during the fourth quarter. Russell Investments Group Ltd. now owns 466,183 shares of the company's stock worth $30,204,000 after buying an additional 102,715 shares during the period. Headlands Technologies LLC acquired a new position in Fastenal during the fourth quarter worth about $181,000. Golden State Equity Partners acquired a new position in Fastenal during the fourth quarter worth about $330,000. Bryn Mawr Capital Management LLC grew its position in Fastenal by 2.7% during the fourth quarter. Bryn Mawr Capital Management LLC now owns 47,667 shares of the company's stock worth $3,087,000 after buying an additional 1,244 shares during the period. Finally, Syon Capital LLC acquired a new position in Fastenal during the fourth quarter worth about $315,000. 81.38% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several analysts have recently commented on the stock. Robert W. Baird lowered their price target on shares of Fastenal from $77.00 to $71.00 and set a "neutral" rating on the stock in a research report on Friday, April 12th. Stifel Nicolaus increased their price target on shares of Fastenal from $75.00 to $85.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a research report on Monday, March 18th. HSBC increased their price target on shares of Fastenal from $59.00 to $64.00 and gave the company a "hold" rating in a research report on Monday, April 15th. Finally, Loop Capital lowered their price target on shares of Fastenal from $71.00 to $66.00 and set a "hold" rating on the stock in a research report on Monday, April 15th. Five investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and one has assigned a buy rating to the company's stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the company presently has an average rating of "Hold" and an average target price of $67.67.

Fastenal Trading Up 0.0 %

Shares of Fastenal stock traded up $0.03 during trading hours on Friday, hitting $68.17. The company's stock had a trading volume of 2,802,015 shares, compared to its average volume of 4,004,192. Fastenal has a 1-year low of $52.66 and a 1-year high of $79.04. The business has a fifty day moving average of $73.41 and a 200 day moving average of $66.80. The company has a market capitalization of $39.03 billion, a PE ratio of 33.75, a P/E/G ratio of 3.57 and a beta of 1.05. The company has a quick ratio of 2.49, a current ratio of 4.83 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.06.

Fastenal (NASDAQ:FAST - Get Free Report) last released its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, April 11th. The company reported $0.52 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $0.53 by ($0.01). Fastenal had a return on equity of 33.98% and a net margin of 15.68%. The business had revenue of $1.90 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $1.91 billion. During the same period in the previous year, the company earned $0.52 EPS. Fastenal's revenue was up 1.9% on a year-over-year basis. As a group, equities analysts forecast that Fastenal will post 2.12 EPS for the current year.

Fastenal Dividend Announcement

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, May 23rd. Investors of record on Thursday, April 25th will be issued a dividend of $0.39 per share. This represents a $1.56 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 2.29%. The ex-dividend date is Wednesday, April 24th. Fastenal's payout ratio is 77.23%.

Insider Activity at Fastenal

In related news, insider Jeffery Michael Watts sold 19,420 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction on Tuesday, February 20th. The shares were sold at an average price of $70.25, for a total transaction of $1,364,255.00. Following the completion of the sale, the insider now directly owns 5,940 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $417,285. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available through the SEC website. In other Fastenal news, VP Charles S. Miller sold 11,076 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction on Friday, March 15th. The shares were sold at an average price of $75.16, for a total transaction of $832,472.16. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this link. Also, insider Jeffery Michael Watts sold 19,420 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction on Tuesday, February 20th. The stock was sold at an average price of $70.25, for a total transaction of $1,364,255.00. Following the transaction, the insider now directly owns 5,940 shares of the company's stock, valued at $417,285. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last three months, insiders sold 36,082 shares of company stock valued at $2,584,060. Corporate insiders own 0.41% of the company's stock.

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.