Short Interest in Fastenal (NASDAQ:FAST) Grows By 6.1%

Fastenal (NASDAQ:FAST) was the recipient of a large growth in short interest during the month of August. As of August 31st, there was short interest totalling 14,130,000 shares, a growth of 6.1% from the August 15th total of 13,320,000 shares. Currently, 2.5% of the company’s stock are short sold. Based on an average daily trading volume, of 2,850,000 shares, the short-interest ratio is currently 5.0 days.

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 completion of the sale, the chief executive officer now directly owns 286,018 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $19,929,734.24. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available through this hyperlink. In related news, CEO Daniel L. Florness sold 45,744 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Wednesday, August 21st. The shares were sold at an average price of $68.14, for a total value of $3,116,996.16. Following the completion of the sale, 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 legal filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Also, CEO Daniel L. Florness sold 50,000 shares of the firm’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 transaction, the chief executive officer now directly owns 286,018 shares in the company, valued at $19,929,734.24. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders own 0.41% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Trading of Fastenal

Large investors have recently modified their holdings of the business. Norges Bank purchased a new stake in Fastenal in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $405,513,000. ProShare Advisors LLC raised its position in shares of Fastenal by 497.3% in the 1st quarter. ProShare Advisors LLC now owns 3,099,333 shares of the company’s stock worth $239,083,000 after buying an additional 2,580,478 shares during the period. TD Asset Management Inc boosted its holdings in Fastenal by 112.9% in the fourth quarter. TD Asset Management Inc now owns 2,679,735 shares of the company’s stock valued at $173,566,000 after acquiring an additional 1,420,763 shares during the last quarter. Baird Financial Group Inc. boosted its holdings 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 acquiring an additional 1,043,529 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Los Angeles Capital Management LLC grew its position in Fastenal by 46.2% during 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 acquiring an additional 1,006,402 shares during the period. 81.38% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Fastenal Price Performance

Fastenal stock traded up $0.73 during midday trading on Thursday, reaching $71.20. The company’s stock had a trading volume of 255,971 shares, compared to its average volume of 3,409,399. The firm has a market capitalization of $40.77 billion, a PE ratio of 35.06, a P/E/G ratio of 3.78 and a beta of 1.01. Fastenal has a fifty-two week low of $53.83 and a fifty-two week high of $79.04. The stock’s 50 day simple moving average is $67.80 and its 200 day simple moving average is $68.50. 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, July 12th. The company reported $0.51 earnings per share for the quarter, meeting the consensus estimate of $0.51. Fastenal had a return on equity of 33.54% and a net margin of 15.54%. The company had revenue of $1.92 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $1.91 billion. During the same quarter in the prior year, the company earned $0.52 earnings per share. Fastenal’s revenue was up 1.8% compared to the same quarter last year. On average, equities research analysts forecast that Fastenal will post 2.04 earnings per share for the current year.

Fastenal Dividend Announcement

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

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several research firms have commented on FAST. Morgan Stanley assumed coverage on Fastenal in a research note on Friday, September 6th. They set an “equal weight” rating and a $72.00 price objective for the company. Stifel Nicolaus reaffirmed a “buy” rating and set a $80.00 price target (down from $85.00) on shares of Fastenal in a report on Monday, July 15th. Stephens reiterated an “equal weight” rating and issued a $56.00 price objective on shares of Fastenal in a research report on Monday, July 15th. Finally, Jefferies Financial Group cut their price objective on shares of Fastenal from $74.00 to $65.00 and set a “hold” rating for the company in a research report on Thursday, July 11th. Seven analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and one has given a buy rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $67.43.

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.