Covenant Asset Management LLC Has $985,000 Stake in Fastenal (NASDAQ:FAST)

Covenant Asset Management LLC lifted its position in shares of Fastenal (NASDAQ:FAST) by 2.0% during the second quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm owned 16,695 shares of the company’s stock after purchasing an additional 331 shares during the quarter. Covenant Asset Management LLC’s holdings in Fastenal were worth $985,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other institutional investors also recently modified their holdings of FAST. Ritholtz Wealth Management grew its holdings in Fastenal by 28.7% during the first quarter. Ritholtz Wealth Management now owns 20,928 shares of the company’s stock worth $1,129,000 after buying an additional 4,668 shares in the last quarter. Pictet Asset Management SA grew its holdings in Fastenal by 17.7% during the first quarter. Pictet Asset Management SA now owns 798,504 shares of the company’s stock worth $43,071,000 after buying an additional 120,350 shares in the last quarter. Arete Wealth Advisors LLC bought a new stake in Fastenal during the first quarter worth $284,000. DnB Asset Management AS grew its holdings in Fastenal by 32.8% during the second quarter. DnB Asset Management AS now owns 203,184 shares of the company’s stock worth $11,986,000 after buying an additional 50,205 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Arizona State Retirement System grew its holdings in Fastenal by 2.4% during the first quarter. Arizona State Retirement System now owns 166,518 shares of the company’s stock worth $8,982,000 after buying an additional 3,851 shares in the last quarter. 78.47% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several brokerages recently issued reports on FAST. Jefferies Financial Group upped their price target on Fastenal from $50.00 to $60.00 in a report on Friday, June 16th. Robert W. Baird upped their price objective on Fastenal from $57.00 to $60.00 in a research note on Friday, July 14th. StockNews.com began coverage on Fastenal in a research note on Thursday, August 17th. They issued a “hold” rating for the company. HSBC began coverage on Fastenal in a research note on Friday. They issued a “hold” rating and a $59.00 price objective for the company. Finally, Stephens downgraded Fastenal from an “overweight” rating to an “equal weight” rating and set a $60.00 price objective for the company. in a research note on Thursday, July 13th. They noted that the move was a valuation call. One research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, six have issued a hold rating and one has issued a buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company presently has an average rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $57.00.

Fastenal Stock Performance

Shares of FAST stock traded down $0.04 on Tuesday, hitting $54.87. 294,843 shares of the stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 3,164,135. 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 firm has a market capitalization of $31.35 billion, a PE ratio of 27.87, a P/E/G ratio of 3.09 and a beta of 1.16. Fastenal has a one year low of $43.73 and a one year high of $59.43. The firm’s 50 day moving average is $57.11 and its two-hundred day moving average is $55.33.

Fastenal (NASDAQ:FAST) last posted 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 firm had revenue of $1.88 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $1.89 billion. Fastenal had a return on equity of 34.63% and a net margin of 15.52%. The firm’s revenue was up 5.9% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the previous year, the company posted $0.50 EPS. Sell-side analysts expect that Fastenal will post 1.98 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Fastenal Announces Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, August 24th. Stockholders 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 dividend yield of 2.55%. Fastenal’s payout ratio is 71.07%.

Insider Transactions at Fastenal

In other news, Director Reyne K. Wisecup sold 19,564 shares of the stock in a transaction 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 completion of the transaction, the director now owns 20,000 shares in the company, valued at approximately $1,135,600. The transaction was disclosed in a 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 stock in a transaction dated 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 approximately $1,135,600. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through the SEC website. Also, Director Michael J. Ancius acquired 500 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, July 17th. The shares were bought at an average cost of $57.53 per share, for a total transaction of $28,765.00. Following the acquisition, the director now directly owns 28,765 shares in the company, valued at approximately $1,654,850.45. The disclosure for this purchase can be found here. 0.45% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Fastenal Company 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.