Zacks Research Comments on Fastenal’s Q4 2024 Earnings (NASDAQ:FAST)

Fastenal (NASDAQ:FAST) – Equities research analysts at Zacks Research reduced their Q4 2024 earnings per share estimates for shares of Fastenal in a report issued on Tuesday, June 25th. Zacks Research analyst S. Mukherjee now expects that the company will post earnings of $0.51 per share for the quarter, down from their prior estimate of $0.52. The consensus estimate for Fastenal’s current full-year earnings is $2.08 per share.

Fastenal (NASDAQ:FAST) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, April 11th. 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 net margin of 15.68% and a return on equity of 33.98%. The business had revenue of $1.90 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $1.91 billion. During the same quarter in the previous year, the firm earned $0.52 EPS. Fastenal’s revenue was up 1.9% compared to the same quarter last year.

A number of other research firms have also recently issued reports on FAST. Robert W. Baird dropped their price objective on Fastenal from $71.00 to $69.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a report on Tuesday, May 7th. Loop Capital dropped their price objective on Fastenal from $71.00 to $66.00 and set a “hold” rating for the company in a report on Monday, April 15th. Stifel Nicolaus lifted their target price on Fastenal from $75.00 to $85.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Monday, March 18th. Finally, HSBC lifted their target price on Fastenal from $59.00 to $64.00 and gave the company a “hold” rating in a research report on Monday, April 15th. Five equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and one has issued a buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, the company has an average rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $68.80.

Fastenal Price Performance

FAST opened at $63.33 on Friday. The business has a fifty day moving average of $66.02 and a 200 day moving average of $68.63. Fastenal has a 52-week low of $53.83 and a 52-week high of $79.04. The company has a quick ratio of 2.49, a current ratio of 4.83 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.06. The stock has a market cap of $36.26 billion, a P/E ratio of 31.35, a PEG ratio of 3.44 and a beta of 1.02.

Fastenal Dividend Announcement

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, May 23rd. Shareholders of record on Thursday, April 25th were given a dividend of $0.39 per share. This represents a $1.56 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 2.46%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Wednesday, April 24th. Fastenal’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 77.23%.

Insider Transactions at Fastenal

In related news, Director Hsenghung Sam Hsu purchased 500 shares of Fastenal stock in a transaction dated Monday, June 10th. The stock was purchased at an average cost of $63.28 per share, with a total value of $31,640.00. Following the transaction, the director now owns 3,500 shares in the company, valued at approximately $221,480. The purchase was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available through the SEC website. In related news, Director Daniel L. Johnson purchased 3,350 shares of Fastenal stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, April 17th. The stock was purchased at an average cost of $68.38 per share, with a total value of $229,073.00. Following the transaction, the director now owns 10,595 shares in the company, valued at approximately $724,486.10. The purchase was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available through the SEC website. Also, Director Hsenghung Sam Hsu bought 500 shares of Fastenal stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, June 10th. The shares were acquired at an average cost of $63.28 per share, for a total transaction of $31,640.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the director now directly owns 3,500 shares in the company, valued at $221,480. The disclosure for this purchase can be found here. Corporate insiders own 0.41% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Several hedge funds have recently added to or reduced their stakes in FAST. Norges Bank acquired a new position in Fastenal during the 4th quarter valued at about $405,513,000. ProShare Advisors LLC increased its position in Fastenal by 497.3% during the 1st quarter. ProShare Advisors LLC now owns 3,099,333 shares of the company’s stock valued at $239,083,000 after buying an additional 2,580,478 shares in the last quarter. Confluence Investment Management LLC acquired a new position in Fastenal during the 1st quarter valued at about $195,459,000. TD Asset Management Inc increased its position in Fastenal by 112.9% during the 4th quarter. TD Asset Management Inc now owns 2,679,735 shares of the company’s stock valued at $173,566,000 after buying an additional 1,420,763 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Baird Financial Group Inc. increased its position in Fastenal by 15.2% during the 4th quarter. Baird Financial Group Inc. now owns 7,928,209 shares of the company’s stock valued at $513,510,000 after buying an additional 1,043,529 shares in the last quarter. 81.38% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

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.