Fastenal (NASDAQ:FAST) Rating Reiterated by Stifel Nicolaus

Fastenal (NASDAQ:FAST)‘s stock had its “buy” rating reaffirmed by Stifel Nicolaus in a note issued to investors on Monday, Benzinga reports. They currently have a $86.00 target price on the stock, up from their prior target price of $80.00. Stifel Nicolaus’ price target points to a potential upside of 11.82% from the company’s current price.

A number of other analysts have also recently weighed in on FAST. Morgan Stanley initiated coverage on shares of Fastenal in a research note on Friday, September 6th. They set an “equal weight” rating and a $72.00 target price on the stock. Stephens lifted their price target on shares of Fastenal from $56.00 to $75.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a report on Monday. Bank of America began coverage on shares of Fastenal in a report on Monday, October 7th. They set a “buy” rating and a $85.00 price target on the stock. Robert W. Baird lifted their price target on shares of Fastenal from $67.00 to $80.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a report on Monday. Finally, Jefferies Financial Group cut their price target on shares of Fastenal from $74.00 to $65.00 and set a “hold” rating on the stock in a report on Thursday, July 11th. Seven analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and two have issued a buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $73.33.

Fastenal Stock Performance

NASDAQ FAST opened at $76.91 on Monday. The firm’s fifty day moving average price is $69.21 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $67.88. The stock has a market cap of $44.03 billion, a PE ratio of 38.26, a PEG ratio of 4.13 and a beta of 1.01. Fastenal has a fifty-two week low of $56.41 and a fifty-two week high of $79.04. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.04, a quick ratio of 2.29 and a current ratio of 4.39.

Fastenal (NASDAQ:FAST) last posted its earnings results on Friday, October 11th. The company reported $0.52 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.51 by $0.01. The firm had revenue of $1.91 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $1.90 billion. Fastenal had a net margin of 15.54% and a return on equity of 33.54%. The company’s revenue was up 3.5% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the previous year, the firm posted $0.52 earnings per share. On average, equities analysts expect that Fastenal will post 2.04 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Insider Activity at Fastenal

In related news, CEO Daniel L. Florness sold 50,000 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Thursday, September 12th. The shares were sold at an average price of $69.68, for a total value of $3,484,000.00. Following the transaction, the chief executive officer now owns 286,018 shares in the company, valued at $19,929,734.24. The trade was a 0.00 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this hyperlink. In other news, CEO Daniel L. Florness sold 45,744 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated 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 transaction, the chief executive officer now owns 286,018 shares in the company, valued at approximately $19,489,266.52. This represents a 0.00 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this link. Also, CEO Daniel L. Florness sold 50,000 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Thursday, September 12th. The shares were sold at an average price of $69.68, for a total transaction of $3,484,000.00. Following the transaction, the chief executive officer now owns 286,018 shares in the company, valued at $19,929,734.24. This represents a 0.00 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. 0.41% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Fastenal

Several institutional investors have recently made changes to their positions in the stock. Legal & General Group Plc raised its holdings in shares of Fastenal by 3.4% during the second quarter. Legal & General Group Plc now owns 5,909,206 shares of the company’s stock valued at $371,334,000 after purchasing an additional 193,734 shares during the period. Envestnet Asset Management Inc. increased its position in shares of Fastenal by 1.4% during the second quarter. Envestnet Asset Management Inc. now owns 4,665,482 shares of the company’s stock worth $293,179,000 after acquiring an additional 66,130 shares in the last quarter. Thrivent Financial for Lutherans increased its position in shares of Fastenal by 13.2% during the second quarter. Thrivent Financial for Lutherans now owns 4,420,659 shares of the company’s stock worth $277,794,000 after acquiring an additional 517,172 shares in the last quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP increased its position in shares of Fastenal by 19.9% during the second quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP now owns 3,837,530 shares of the company’s stock worth $241,161,000 after acquiring an additional 636,546 shares in the last quarter. Finally, TD Asset Management Inc increased its position in shares of Fastenal by 21.2% during the first quarter. TD Asset Management Inc now owns 3,248,853 shares of the company’s stock worth $250,617,000 after acquiring an additional 569,118 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 81.38% of the company’s stock.

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, 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.