Clarus Wealth Advisors Acquires New Stake in Fastenal (NASDAQ:FAST)

Clarus Wealth Advisors bought a new position in shares of Fastenal (NASDAQ:FAST) in the second quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the SEC. The institutional investor bought 4,082 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $236,000.

Other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently modified their holdings of the company. BlackRock Inc. lifted its stake in Fastenal by 0.3% in the 1st quarter. BlackRock Inc. now owns 45,154,559 shares of the company’s stock valued at $2,435,637,000 after acquiring an additional 138,257 shares in the last quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC lifted its position in shares of Fastenal by 0.9% in the first quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 13,676,410 shares of the company’s stock worth $736,259,000 after purchasing an additional 117,040 shares in the last quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. boosted its holdings in Fastenal by 10.9% during the fourth quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. now owns 11,989,837 shares of the company’s stock worth $567,359,000 after purchasing an additional 1,179,460 shares during the last quarter. Morgan Stanley grew its position in Fastenal by 37.8% in the fourth quarter. Morgan Stanley now owns 9,092,207 shares of the company’s stock valued at $430,243,000 after purchasing an additional 2,492,722 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Baird Financial Group Inc. increased its stake in Fastenal by 22.9% in the 4th quarter. Baird Financial Group Inc. now owns 8,249,677 shares of the company’s stock valued at $390,374,000 after buying an additional 1,537,417 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 78.47% of the company’s stock.

Insider Transactions at Fastenal

In related news, Director Reyne K. Wisecup sold 19,564 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, August 21st. The stock was sold at an average price of $56.78, for a total transaction of $1,110,843.92. Following the sale, the director now owns 20,000 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $1,135,600. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this link. In other news, Director Michael J. Ancius bought 500 shares of the stock in a transaction on Monday, July 17th. The stock was acquired at an average price of $57.53 per share, with a total value of $28,765.00. Following the acquisition, the director now directly owns 28,765 shares in the company, valued at $1,654,850.45. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available through this hyperlink. Also, Director Reyne K. Wisecup sold 19,564 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on 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 of the company’s stock, valued at $1,135,600. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders own 0.45% of the company’s stock.

Fastenal Price Performance

NASDAQ:FAST opened at $55.22 on Friday. The firm’s fifty day moving average price is $57.11 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $55.31. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.06, a current ratio of 4.26 and a quick ratio of 2.13. The company has a market cap of $31.55 billion, a P/E ratio of 28.03, a P/E/G ratio of 3.06 and a beta of 1.16. Fastenal has a one year low of $43.73 and a one year high of $59.43.

Fastenal (NASDAQ:FAST) last released its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, July 13th. The company reported $0.52 earnings per share for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $0.53 by ($0.01). The company had revenue of $1.88 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $1.89 billion. Fastenal had a net margin of 15.52% and a return on equity of 34.63%. The firm’s revenue was up 5.9% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the prior year, the company earned $0.50 earnings per share. Equities analysts expect that Fastenal will post 1.98 earnings per share for the current year.

Fastenal Announces Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, August 24th. Stockholders of record on Thursday, July 27th were issued a dividend of $0.35 per share. This represents a $1.40 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 2.54%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Wednesday, July 26th. Fastenal’s dividend payout ratio is currently 71.07%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

FAST has been the topic of a number of recent research reports. StockNews.com started coverage on Fastenal in a research report on Thursday, August 17th. They issued a “hold” rating on the stock. Stephens cut Fastenal from an “overweight” rating to an “equal weight” rating and set a $60.00 price objective on the stock. in a research note on Thursday, July 13th. They noted that the move was a valuation call. Robert W. Baird raised their target price on shares of Fastenal from $57.00 to $60.00 in a research note on Friday, July 14th. HSBC began coverage on shares of Fastenal in a report on Friday. They set a “hold” rating and a $59.00 target price on the stock. Finally, Jefferies Financial Group increased their price target on shares of Fastenal from $50.00 to $60.00 in a research note on Friday, June 16th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, six have given a hold rating and one has issued a buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $57.00.

Fastenal Profile

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.