Fastenal (NASDAQ:FAST) Shares Sold by Choreo LLC

Choreo LLC lessened its holdings in shares of Fastenal (NASDAQ:FAST) by 5.5% during the 4th quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the SEC. The institutional investor owned 23,738 shares of the company’s stock after selling 1,394 shares during the quarter. Choreo LLC’s holdings in Fastenal were worth $1,707,000 as of its most recent filing with the SEC.

Several other hedge funds have also made changes to their positions in the business. Confluence Wealth Services Inc. lifted its position in shares of Fastenal by 363.4% during the fourth quarter. Confluence Wealth Services Inc. now owns 16,443 shares of the company’s stock worth $1,241,000 after purchasing an additional 12,895 shares in the last quarter. Mirae Asset Global Investments Co. Ltd. lifted its position in shares of Fastenal by 18.2% during the fourth quarter. Mirae Asset Global Investments Co. Ltd. now owns 579,925 shares of the company’s stock worth $42,338,000 after purchasing an additional 89,110 shares in the last quarter. Stratos Wealth Partners LTD. lifted its position in shares of Fastenal by 2.9% during the fourth quarter. Stratos Wealth Partners LTD. now owns 101,556 shares of the company’s stock worth $7,303,000 after purchasing an additional 2,905 shares in the last quarter. E. Ohman J or Asset Management AB lifted its position in shares of Fastenal by 11.1% during the fourth quarter. E. Ohman J or Asset Management AB now owns 25,000 shares of the company’s stock worth $1,798,000 after purchasing an additional 2,500 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Trust Point Inc. raised its holdings in Fastenal by 7.1% in the fourth quarter. Trust Point Inc. now owns 75,710 shares of the company’s stock valued at $5,444,000 after acquiring an additional 5,046 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 81.38% of the company’s stock.

Fastenal Stock Performance

Shares of FAST opened at $73.84 on Friday. The company has a current ratio of 4.67, a quick ratio of 2.28 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.03. The firm has a market cap of $42.30 billion, a PE ratio of 36.74, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 3.48 and a beta of 1.02. The company’s 50 day simple moving average is $75.63 and its 200-day simple moving average is $73.86. Fastenal has a 12-month low of $61.36 and a 12-month high of $84.88.

Fastenal (NASDAQ:FAST) last announced its earnings results on Friday, January 17th. The company reported $0.46 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.48 by ($0.02). The business had revenue of $1.82 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $1.84 billion. Fastenal had a return on equity of 32.55% and a net margin of 15.25%. The business’s revenue was up 3.7% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter last year, the business posted $0.46 earnings per share. As a group, equities analysts predict that Fastenal will post 2.15 EPS for the current year.

Fastenal Increases Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, February 28th. Stockholders of record on Friday, January 31st will be given a dividend of $0.43 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, January 31st. This is a positive change from Fastenal’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.39. This represents a $1.72 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 2.33%. Fastenal’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 85.57%.

Insider Transactions at Fastenal

In related news, CEO Daniel L. Florness sold 31,818 shares of the stock in a transaction on Monday, November 11th. The stock was sold at an average price of $84.50, for a total transaction of $2,688,621.00. Following the completion of the sale, the chief executive officer now directly owns 286,018 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $24,168,521. This trade represents a 10.01 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this link. Also, Director Daniel L. Johnson sold 8,474 shares of the stock in a transaction on Wednesday, November 13th. The stock was sold at an average price of $83.36, for a total value of $706,392.64. Following the sale, the director now directly owns 10,595 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $883,199.20. This represents a 44.44 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last ninety days, insiders have sold 63,772 shares of company stock worth $5,365,455. Insiders own 0.41% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several analysts recently weighed in on FAST shares. UBS Group started coverage on shares of Fastenal in a report on Wednesday, November 13th. They issued a “neutral” rating and a $88.00 target price on the stock. HSBC cut shares of Fastenal from a “hold” rating to a “reduce” rating and set a $70.00 target price on the stock. in a report on Wednesday, December 11th. Hsbc Global Res cut shares of Fastenal from a “hold” rating to a “moderate sell” rating in a report on Wednesday, December 11th. Morgan Stanley raised their target price on shares of Fastenal from $72.00 to $76.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a report on Monday, October 14th. Finally, Stifel Nicolaus reduced their target price on shares of Fastenal from $86.00 to $82.00 and set a “hold” rating on the stock in a report on Tuesday, January 21st. Two analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, eight have given a hold rating and one has given a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock currently has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $76.91.

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.