Fastenal (NASDAQ:FAST) Shares Sold by California State Teachers Retirement System

California State Teachers Retirement System cut its stake in shares of Fastenal (NASDAQ:FAST – Get Rating) by 1.0% in the third quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund owned 958,109 shares of the company’s stock after selling 9,651 shares during the period. California State Teachers Retirement System’s holdings in Fastenal were worth $44,111,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other institutional investors have also made changes to their positions in FAST. Old North State Trust LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Fastenal during the third quarter valued at about $31,000. Guardian Wealth Advisors LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Fastenal during the third quarter valued at about $42,000. Ellevest Inc. increased its position in shares of Fastenal by 55.4% during the third quarter. Ellevest Inc. now owns 1,270 shares of the company’s stock valued at $58,000 after acquiring an additional 453 shares during the last quarter. Nelson Van Denburg & Campbell Wealth Management Group LLC increased its position in shares of Fastenal by 40.0% during the third quarter. Nelson Van Denburg & Campbell Wealth Management Group LLC now owns 1,399 shares of the company’s stock valued at $64,000 after acquiring an additional 400 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Allworth Financial LP increased its position in shares of Fastenal by 66.4% during the third quarter. Allworth Financial LP now owns 1,444 shares of the company’s stock valued at $66,000 after acquiring an additional 576 shares during the last quarter. 76.99% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

FAST has been the subject of a number of recent analyst reports. StockNews.com began coverage on shares of Fastenal in a research report on Thursday. They set a “hold” rating for the company. Loop Capital dropped their price objective on shares of Fastenal from $54.00 to $53.00 and set a “hold” rating for the company in a report on Monday, January 23rd. Finally, Morgan Stanley dropped their price objective on shares of Fastenal from $43.00 to $42.00 and set an “underweight” rating for the company in a report on Friday, January 6th. One analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, six have assigned a hold rating and one has assigned a buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $51.14.

Fastenal Stock Down 0.5 %

Shares of Fastenal stock opened at $52.14 on Friday. Fastenal has a 52-week low of $43.73 and a 52-week high of $60.74. The company has a 50 day moving average of $51.30 and a 200 day moving average of $49.67. The company has a quick ratio of 1.79, a current ratio of 3.96 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.11. The company has a market capitalization of $29.77 billion, a P/E ratio of 27.44, a P/E/G ratio of 3.00 and a beta of 1.19.

Fastenal (NASDAQ:FAST – Get Rating) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, January 19th. The company reported $0.43 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.42 by $0.01. Fastenal had a net margin of 15.57% and a return on equity of 34.38%. The company had revenue of $1.70 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $1.67 billion. During the same quarter in the previous year, the firm earned $0.40 earnings per share. The firm’s quarterly revenue was up 10.7% on a year-over-year basis. As a group, research analysts forecast that Fastenal will post 1.94 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Fastenal Increases Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, March 2nd. Investors of record on Thursday, February 2nd were paid a $0.35 dividend. The ex-dividend date was Wednesday, February 1st. This represents a $1.40 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 2.69%. This is an increase from Fastenal’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.31. Fastenal’s payout ratio is currently 73.68%.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, VP Terry Modock Owen sold 15,000 shares of Fastenal stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, February 7th. The shares were sold at an average price of $53.24, for a total value of $798,600.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the vice president now owns 7,000 shares in the company, valued at $372,680. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. 0.45% of the stock is owned by insiders.

About Fastenal

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Fastenal Co engages in the distribution of fasteners and tools. It also operates hardware stores. The company was founded by Robert A. Kierlin, Michael M. Gostomski, Henry K. McCannon, John D. Remick, and Stephen M. Slaggie in November 1967 and is headquartered in Winona, MN.