M&T Bank Corp Sells 21,392 Shares of Fastenal (NASDAQ:FAST)

M&T Bank Corp cut its stake in Fastenal (NASDAQ:FAST - Free Report) by 5.8% during the fourth quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm owned 344,686 shares of the company's stock after selling 21,392 shares during the quarter. M&T Bank Corp owned about 0.06% of Fastenal worth $22,325,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the business. Essex Financial Services Inc. grew its stake in Fastenal by 1.8% in the 4th quarter. Essex Financial Services Inc. now owns 8,539 shares of the company's stock valued at $553,000 after acquiring an additional 148 shares during the period. Hartford Financial Management Inc. lifted its stake in Fastenal by 46.9% during the fourth quarter. Hartford Financial Management Inc. now owns 479 shares of the company's stock worth $31,000 after purchasing an additional 153 shares in the last quarter. Empirical Asset Management LLC grew its position in Fastenal by 2.4% in the 4th quarter. Empirical Asset Management LLC now owns 7,212 shares of the company's stock valued at $467,000 after acquiring an additional 171 shares in the last quarter. Berkshire Bank increased its stake in Fastenal by 3.1% during the third 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. Finally, OmniStar Financial Group Inc. lifted its position in shares of Fastenal by 1.1% during the third quarter. OmniStar Financial Group Inc. now owns 15,960 shares of the company's stock worth $873,000 after purchasing an additional 174 shares in the last quarter. 81.38% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Fastenal Price Performance

NASDAQ:FAST traded up $0.34 during mid-day trading on Friday, hitting $68.43. 2,592,954 shares of the company's stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 4,096,502. Fastenal has a 1 year low of $52.85 and a 1 year high of $79.04. The company has a market cap of $39.18 billion, a PE ratio of 33.88, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 3.56 and a beta of 1.07. The firm's 50 day simple moving average is $73.13 and its 200 day simple moving average is $67.07. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.06, a quick ratio of 2.49 and a current ratio of 4.83.

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

Fastenal Announces Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, May 23rd. Stockholders of record on Thursday, April 25th will be issued a $0.39 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Wednesday, April 24th. This represents a $1.56 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 2.28%. Fastenal's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 77.23%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several brokerages recently weighed in on FAST. Stifel Nicolaus upped their target price on shares of Fastenal from $75.00 to $85.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a research note on Monday, March 18th. Loop Capital cut their target price on shares of 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 price target on shares of Fastenal from $77.00 to $71.00 and set a "neutral" rating for the company in a research note on Friday, April 12th. Finally, HSBC increased their price objective 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. Five analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and one has assigned a buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, Fastenal presently has a consensus rating of "Hold" and an average target price of $67.67.

Insider Transactions at Fastenal

In related news, Director Daniel L. Johnson bought 3,350 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, April 17th. The stock was purchased at an average price of $68.38 per share, for a total transaction of $229,073.00. Following the transaction, the director now directly owns 10,595 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $724,486.10. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through the SEC website. In other Fastenal news, Director Daniel L. Johnson purchased 3,350 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction on Wednesday, April 17th. The shares were purchased 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 in the company, valued at approximately $724,486.10. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. Also, insider Jeffery Michael Watts sold 19,420 shares of the stock in a transaction on Tuesday, February 20th. The shares were sold at an average price of $70.25, for a total value of $1,364,255.00. Following the sale, the insider now owns 5,940 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $417,285. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last three months, insiders have sold 36,082 shares of company stock worth $2,584,060. 0.41% of the stock is currently owned by 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.