Daniel L. Johnson Purchases 3,350 Shares of Fastenal (NASDAQ:FAST) Stock

Fastenal (NASDAQ:FAST) Director Daniel L. Johnson acquired 3,350 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction 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 can be accessed through the SEC website.

Fastenal Price Performance

Shares of NASDAQ FAST opened at $67.50 on Friday. Fastenal has a 1 year low of $52.28 and a 1 year high of $79.04. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.06, a current ratio of 4.83 and a quick ratio of 2.49. The company’s 50-day moving average is $73.67 and its 200 day moving average is $66.21. The stock has a market capitalization of $38.65 billion, a P/E ratio of 33.42, a P/E/G ratio of 3.57 and a beta of 1.05.

Fastenal (NASDAQ:FAST) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, April 11th. The company reported $0.52 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $0.53 by ($0.01). Fastenal had a net margin of 15.68% and a return on equity of 33.98%. The company had revenue of $1.90 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $1.91 billion. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm earned $0.52 EPS. Fastenal’s quarterly revenue was up 1.9% compared to the same quarter last year. On average, sell-side analysts expect that Fastenal will post 2.13 earnings per share for the current year.

Fastenal Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, May 23rd. Investors of record on Thursday, April 25th will be paid a dividend of $0.39 per share. This represents a $1.56 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.31%. The ex-dividend date is Wednesday, April 24th. Fastenal’s payout ratio is currently 77.23%.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Fastenal

Several hedge funds have recently bought and sold shares of the business. Essex Financial Services Inc. boosted its stake in Fastenal by 1.8% during the fourth quarter. Essex Financial Services Inc. now owns 8,539 shares of the company’s stock worth $553,000 after acquiring an additional 148 shares in the last quarter. Panagora Asset Management Inc. boosted its stake in Fastenal by 0.8% during the fourth quarter. Panagora Asset Management Inc. now owns 19,095 shares of the company’s stock worth $1,237,000 after acquiring an additional 152 shares in the last quarter. Hartford Financial Management Inc. boosted 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 acquiring an additional 153 shares in the last quarter. Quarry LP boosted its stake in Fastenal by 62.3% during the fourth quarter. Quarry LP now owns 409 shares of the company’s stock worth $26,000 after acquiring an additional 157 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Accredited Investors Inc. boosted its stake in Fastenal by 0.9% during the fourth quarter. Accredited Investors Inc. now owns 18,129 shares of the company’s stock worth $1,174,000 after acquiring an additional 164 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors own 81.38% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Ratings Changes

FAST has been the topic of a number of analyst reports. Stifel Nicolaus boosted their price objective on shares of Fastenal from $75.00 to $85.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Monday, March 18th. Robert W. Baird decreased their price objective on shares of Fastenal from $77.00 to $71.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a research report on Friday, April 12th. Loop Capital decreased their price objective on shares of Fastenal from $71.00 to $66.00 and set a “hold” rating on the stock in a research report on Monday. Finally, HSBC boosted 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. Five equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and one has assigned a buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, Fastenal currently has an average rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $67.67.

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.