Independent Advisor Alliance Invests $538,000 in Fastenal (NASDAQ:FAST)

Independent Advisor Alliance bought a new position in Fastenal (NASDAQ:FAST) in the 1st quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm bought 9,983 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $538,000.

Other hedge funds also recently made changes to their positions in the company. Avalon Trust Co acquired a new stake in shares of Fastenal in the first quarter valued at about $29,000. Ridgewood Investments LLC purchased a new position in Fastenal during the 1st quarter valued at about $30,000. New Hampshire Trust purchased a new position in Fastenal during the 4th quarter valued at about $31,000. Resurgent Financial Advisors LLC purchased a new position in Fastenal during the 4th quarter valued at about $33,000. Finally, Carderock Capital Management Inc. purchased a new position in Fastenal during the 1st quarter valued at about $42,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 78.47% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of equities research analysts have recently commented on the stock. StockNews.com assumed coverage on shares of Fastenal in a report on Thursday, August 17th. They set a “hold” rating for the company. Jefferies Financial Group raised their target price on shares of Fastenal from $50.00 to $60.00 in a research report on Friday, June 16th. Stephens cut shares of Fastenal from an “overweight” rating to an “equal weight” rating and set a $60.00 price target on the stock. in a research report on Thursday, July 13th. They noted that the move was a valuation call. Finally, Robert W. Baird lifted their price target on shares of Fastenal from $57.00 to $60.00 in a research report on Friday, July 14th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, five have assigned a hold rating and one has issued a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the company currently has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $56.67.

Insider Buying and Selling at Fastenal

In other news, Director Reyne K. Wisecup sold 19,564 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Monday, August 21st. The shares were sold at an average price of $56.78, for a total transaction of $1,110,843.92. Following the completion of the transaction, the director now owns 20,000 shares in the company, valued at $1,135,600. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. In related news, Director Reyne K. Wisecup sold 19,564 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Monday, August 21st. The shares were sold at an average price of $56.78, for a total value of $1,110,843.92. Following the completion of the sale, the director now owns 20,000 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $1,135,600. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through the SEC website. Also, COO Terry Modock Owen sold 20,000 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, June 13th. The shares were sold at an average price of $56.15, for a total transaction of $1,123,000.00. Following the completion of the sale, the chief operating officer now directly owns 7,000 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $393,050. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. 0.45% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Fastenal Stock Down 0.5 %

Shares of NASDAQ:FAST opened at $57.28 on Tuesday. The company has a current ratio of 4.26, a quick ratio of 2.13 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.06. The company has a fifty day simple moving average of $57.69 and a 200 day simple moving average of $55.13. The firm has a market cap of $32.73 billion, a PE ratio of 29.08, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 3.21 and a beta of 1.16. Fastenal has a 12-month low of $43.73 and a 12-month high of $59.43.

Fastenal (NASDAQ:FAST) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, July 13th. 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 return on equity of 34.63% and a net margin of 15.52%. The company had revenue of $1.88 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $1.89 billion. During the same quarter last year, the firm posted $0.50 EPS. The firm’s quarterly revenue was up 5.9% on a year-over-year basis. On average, equities research analysts anticipate that Fastenal will post 1.98 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Fastenal Announces Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, August 24th. Shareholders of record on Thursday, July 27th were paid a dividend of $0.35 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Wednesday, July 26th. This represents a $1.40 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.44%. Fastenal’s payout ratio is 71.07%.

About Fastenal

Fastenal Company, together with its subsidiaries, engages in the wholesale distribution of industrial and construction supplies in the United States, Canada, Mexico, 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, which are used in manufactured products and construction projects, as well as in the maintenance and repair of machines.