Cim LLC Makes New $1.78 Million Investment in Fastenal (NASDAQ:FAST)

Cim LLC purchased a new stake in Fastenal (NASDAQ:FAST) in the second quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm purchased 27,270 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $1,777,000.

A number of other large investors have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in FAST. ProShare Advisors LLC grew its position in shares of Fastenal by 497.3% in the first quarter. ProShare Advisors LLC now owns 3,099,333 shares of the company’s stock valued at $239,083,000 after purchasing an additional 2,580,478 shares during the last quarter. Baird Financial Group Inc. increased its position in Fastenal by 15.2% during the fourth quarter. Baird Financial Group Inc. now owns 7,928,209 shares of the company’s stock worth $513,510,000 after buying an additional 1,043,529 shares in the last quarter. Los Angeles Capital Management LLC raised its holdings in shares of Fastenal by 46.2% in the first quarter. Los Angeles Capital Management LLC now owns 3,185,855 shares of the company’s stock worth $245,757,000 after acquiring an additional 1,006,402 shares during the last quarter. Marshall Wace LLP lifted its position in shares of Fastenal by 4,008.2% in the second quarter. Marshall Wace LLP now owns 756,241 shares of the company’s stock valued at $47,522,000 after acquiring an additional 737,833 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Epoch Investment Partners Inc. boosted its stake in shares of Fastenal by 76.8% during the fourth quarter. Epoch Investment Partners Inc. now owns 1,690,801 shares of the company’s stock valued at $109,513,000 after acquiring an additional 734,629 shares during the last quarter. 81.38% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

FAST has been the topic of several analyst reports. Jefferies Financial Group decreased their price target on shares of Fastenal from $74.00 to $65.00 and set a “hold” rating on the stock in a research note on Thursday, July 11th. Stephens restated an “equal weight” rating and set a $56.00 target price on shares of Fastenal in a research report on Monday, July 15th. Morgan Stanley assumed coverage on Fastenal in a report on Friday, September 6th. They issued an “equal weight” rating and a $72.00 price target for the company. Finally, Stifel Nicolaus reissued a “buy” rating and set a $80.00 price target (down previously from $85.00) on shares of Fastenal in a research note on Monday, July 15th. Seven analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and one has assigned a buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company currently has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $67.43.

Fastenal Stock Performance

NASDAQ:FAST opened at $71.09 on Wednesday. Fastenal has a fifty-two week low of $53.94 and a fifty-two week high of $79.04. The firm’s 50 day moving average is $68.45 and its two-hundred day moving average is $68.22. The company has a market cap of $40.70 billion, a P/E ratio of 35.37, a P/E/G ratio of 3.92 and a beta of 1.01. The company has a quick ratio of 2.29, a current ratio of 4.39 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.04.

Fastenal (NASDAQ:FAST) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Friday, July 12th. The company reported $0.51 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, meeting analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.51. The firm had revenue of $1.92 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $1.91 billion. Fastenal had a return on equity of 33.54% and a net margin of 15.54%. The firm’s quarterly revenue was up 1.8% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the previous year, the business earned $0.52 earnings per share. Analysts expect that Fastenal will post 2.04 EPS for the current year.

Fastenal Announces Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, August 23rd. Investors of record on Friday, July 26th were issued a $0.39 dividend. The ex-dividend date was Friday, July 26th. This represents a $1.56 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.19%. Fastenal’s payout ratio is 77.61%.

Insider Buying and Selling at Fastenal

In other Fastenal news, CEO Daniel L. Florness sold 45,744 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, August 21st. The stock was sold at an average price of $68.14, for a total value of $3,116,996.16. Following the transaction, the chief executive officer now directly owns 286,018 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $19,489,266.52. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at the SEC website. In related news, CEO Daniel L. Florness sold 45,744 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Wednesday, August 21st. The shares were sold at an average price of $68.14, for a total transaction of $3,116,996.16. Following the completion of the sale, the chief executive officer now directly owns 286,018 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $19,489,266.52. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available through the SEC website. Also, CEO Daniel L. Florness sold 50,000 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Thursday, September 12th. The stock was sold at an average price of $69.68, for a total transaction of $3,484,000.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief executive officer now owns 286,018 shares in the company, valued at approximately $19,929,734.24. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. 0.41% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

Fastenal Profile

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.