Global Retirement Partners LLC Trims Stock Position in Fastenal (NASDAQ:FAST)

Global Retirement Partners LLC lessened its holdings in Fastenal (NASDAQ:FAST) by 2.6% during the 3rd quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor owned 5,670 shares of the company’s stock after selling 150 shares during the period. Global Retirement Partners LLC’s holdings in Fastenal were worth $405,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently modified their holdings of the business. Legal & General Group Plc lifted its holdings in shares of Fastenal by 3.4% in 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 in the last quarter. Envestnet Asset Management Inc. lifted its stake 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 valued at $293,179,000 after buying an additional 66,130 shares during the period. Thrivent Financial for Lutherans lifted its stake 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 valued at $277,794,000 after buying an additional 517,172 shares during the period. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP lifted its stake 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 valued at $241,161,000 after buying an additional 636,546 shares during the period. Finally, TD Asset Management Inc lifted its stake 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 valued at $250,617,000 after buying an additional 569,118 shares during the period. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 81.38% of the company’s stock.

Insider Activity at Fastenal

In related news, insider William Joseph Drazkowski sold 16,362 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Wednesday, October 16th. The shares were sold at an average price of $77.65, for a total transaction of $1,270,509.30. Following the completion of the sale, the insider now directly owns 5,997 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $465,667.05. This trade represents a 0.00 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this link. In other Fastenal news, insider William Joseph Drazkowski sold 16,362 shares of the stock in a transaction on Wednesday, October 16th. The shares were sold at an average price of $77.65, for a total transaction of $1,270,509.30. Following the transaction, the insider now directly owns 5,997 shares in the company, valued at $465,667.05. This represents a 0.00 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available through this link. Also, VP John Lewis Soderberg sold 488 shares of the stock in a transaction on Monday, October 14th. The shares were sold at an average price of $76.32, for a total transaction of $37,244.16. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last three months, insiders sold 179,373 shares of company stock valued at $13,029,308. Corporate insiders own 0.41% of the company’s stock.

Fastenal Price Performance

Fastenal stock opened at $77.77 on Tuesday. Fastenal has a 52-week low of $56.41 and a 52-week high of $79.04. The firm has a fifty day moving average of $70.16 and a 200-day moving average of $67.93. The firm has a market capitalization of $44.53 billion, a P/E ratio of 38.69, a PEG ratio of 4.13 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 released its quarterly earnings data on Friday, October 11th. The company reported $0.52 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $0.51 by $0.01. Fastenal had a net margin of 15.54% and a return on equity of 33.54%. The company had revenue of $1.91 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $1.90 billion. During the same quarter in the prior year, the business earned $0.52 earnings per share. The business’s quarterly revenue was up 3.5% compared to the same quarter last year. As a group, analysts predict that Fastenal will post 2.04 EPS for the current year.

Fastenal Announces Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, November 22nd. Investors of record on Friday, October 25th will be issued a dividend of $0.39 per share. This represents a $1.56 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 2.01%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, October 25th. Fastenal’s payout ratio is 77.61%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several equities analysts recently issued reports on FAST shares. Jefferies Financial Group reduced their price objective 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. Morgan Stanley upped their price objective on shares of Fastenal from $72.00 to $76.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a research note on Monday, October 14th. Bank of America initiated coverage on shares of Fastenal in a research note on Monday, October 7th. They set a “buy” rating and a $85.00 price objective on the stock. JPMorgan Chase & Co. upped their price target on shares of Fastenal from $57.00 to $63.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research report on Thursday, October 10th. Finally, Robert W. Baird upped their price target on shares of Fastenal from $67.00 to $80.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research report on Monday, October 14th. Seven equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and two have issued a buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $73.33.

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.