Fastenal (NASDAQ:FAST) Shares Sold by Compass Capital Management Inc.

Compass Capital Management Inc. reduced its position in Fastenal (NASDAQ:FAST - Free Report) by 1.8% during the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund owned 928,762 shares of the company's stock after selling 17,370 shares during the period. Fastenal makes up about 4.3% of Compass Capital Management Inc.'s investment portfolio, making the stock its 4th biggest position. Compass Capital Management Inc. owned approximately 0.16% of Fastenal worth $60,156,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other large investors also recently modified their holdings of FAST. Hartford Financial Management Inc. raised its position in Fastenal by 46.9% in the fourth quarter. Hartford Financial Management Inc. now owns 479 shares of the company's stock worth $31,000 after acquiring an additional 153 shares during the period. Empirical Asset Management LLC raised its holdings in Fastenal by 2.4% in the 4th quarter. Empirical Asset Management LLC now owns 7,212 shares of the company's stock worth $467,000 after purchasing an additional 171 shares during the period. Berkshire Bank raised its holdings in Fastenal by 3.1% in the 3rd quarter. Berkshire Bank now owns 5,777 shares of the company's stock worth $316,000 after purchasing an additional 174 shares during the period. OmniStar Financial Group Inc. lifted its position in Fastenal by 1.1% during the third quarter. OmniStar Financial Group Inc. now owns 15,960 shares of the company's stock valued at $873,000 after purchasing an additional 174 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Koshinski Asset Management Inc. grew its holdings in Fastenal by 3.8% during the fourth quarter. Koshinski Asset Management Inc. now owns 5,075 shares of the company's stock valued at $329,000 after purchasing an additional 186 shares during the period. Institutional investors own 81.38% of the company's stock.

Fastenal Price Performance

FAST traded down $0.54 on Tuesday, hitting $67.94. 3,076,391 shares of the company's stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 3,975,171. The company's 50 day simple moving average is $73.33 and its 200-day simple moving average is $66.99. The company has a current ratio of 4.83, a quick ratio of 2.49 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.06. Fastenal has a one year low of $52.85 and a one year high of $79.04. The firm has a market cap of $38.90 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 33.63, a P/E/G ratio of 3.57 and a beta of 1.05.

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

Fastenal Dividend Announcement

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, May 23rd. Shareholders of record on Thursday, April 25th will be issued a $0.39 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Wednesday, April 24th. This represents a $1.56 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 2.30%. Fastenal's dividend payout ratio is currently 77.23%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

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

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other news, EVP Anthony Paul Broersma sold 5,586 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, February 6th. The stock was sold at an average price of $69.34, for a total transaction of $387,333.24. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this hyperlink. In other Fastenal news, Director Daniel L. Johnson purchased 3,350 shares of Fastenal stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, April 17th. The shares were bought at an average price of $68.38 per share, for a total transaction of $229,073.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the director now owns 10,595 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $724,486.10. The acquisition was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this hyperlink. Also, EVP Anthony Paul Broersma sold 5,586 shares of the stock in a transaction on Tuesday, February 6th. The shares were sold at an average price of $69.34, for a total transaction of $387,333.24. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold a total of 36,082 shares of company stock worth $2,584,060 in the last 90 days. 0.41% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

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.