Private Advisor Group LLC Has $5.65 Million Stock Position in Fastenal (NASDAQ:FAST)

Private Advisor Group LLC raised its holdings in shares of Fastenal (NASDAQ:FAST) by 3.7% in the 2nd quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 89,875 shares of the company’s stock after acquiring an additional 3,186 shares during the quarter. Private Advisor Group LLC’s holdings in Fastenal were worth $5,648,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors also recently made changes to their positions in FAST. Baird Financial Group Inc. grew its position in Fastenal by 15.2% in the fourth quarter. Baird Financial Group Inc. now owns 7,928,209 shares of the company’s stock valued at $513,510,000 after purchasing an additional 1,043,529 shares in the last quarter. Norges Bank acquired a new stake in shares of Fastenal in the fourth quarter valued at about $405,513,000. Envestnet Asset Management Inc. raised its holdings in Fastenal by 2.3% during the fourth quarter. Envestnet Asset Management Inc. now owns 4,800,534 shares of the company’s stock worth $310,931,000 after acquiring an additional 109,028 shares in the last quarter. TD Asset Management Inc boosted its position in 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 purchasing an additional 569,118 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Los Angeles Capital Management LLC grew its stake in Fastenal by 46.2% in the first quarter. Los Angeles Capital Management LLC now owns 3,185,855 shares of the company’s stock valued at $245,757,000 after purchasing an additional 1,006,402 shares in the last quarter. 81.38% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Fastenal Price Performance

NASDAQ:FAST opened at $68.09 on Tuesday. The company has a market cap of $38.99 billion, a P/E ratio of 33.88, a P/E/G ratio of 3.59 and a beta of 1.01. The firm’s fifty day moving average price is $66.83 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $68.62. Fastenal has a one year low of $53.83 and a one year high of $79.04. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.04, a current ratio of 4.39 and a quick ratio of 2.29.

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

Fastenal Announces Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, August 23rd. Stockholders of record on Friday, July 26th were paid a dividend of $0.39 per share. The ex-dividend date was Friday, July 26th. This represents a $1.56 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 2.29%. Fastenal’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 77.61%.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other Fastenal news, CEO Daniel L. Florness sold 45,744 shares of the stock in a transaction on Wednesday, August 21st. The stock was 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. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this link. 0.41% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of brokerages have recently issued reports on FAST. Morgan Stanley initiated coverage on Fastenal in a research note on Friday. They set an “equal weight” rating and a $72.00 price objective on the stock. Stifel Nicolaus reiterated a “buy” rating and issued a $80.00 price target (down previously from $85.00) on shares of Fastenal in a research note on Monday, July 15th. Stephens restated an “equal weight” rating and set a $56.00 price objective on shares of Fastenal in a research note on Monday, July 15th. Finally, Jefferies Financial Group cut their target price on shares of Fastenal from $74.00 to $65.00 and set a “hold” rating for the company in a research note on Thursday, July 11th. Seven investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and one has assigned a buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company presently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $67.43.

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.