Fastenal (NASDAQ:FAST) Shares Acquired by Epoch Investment Partners Inc.

Epoch Investment Partners Inc. grew its stake in Fastenal (NASDAQ:FAST) by 4.6% during the second quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the SEC. The firm owned 2,032,818 shares of the company’s stock after acquiring an additional 90,071 shares during the period. Epoch Investment Partners Inc.’s holdings in Fastenal were worth $127,742,000 as of its most recent filing with the SEC.

Several other large investors have also recently made changes to their positions in the stock. Baird Financial Group Inc. raised 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 during the period. Envestnet Asset Management Inc. raised its holdings in shares of Fastenal by 2.3% in the 4th quarter. Envestnet Asset Management Inc. now owns 4,800,534 shares of the company’s stock valued at $310,931,000 after buying an additional 109,028 shares during the period. Thrivent Financial for Lutherans lifted its stake in Fastenal by 13.2% during the 2nd 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 boosted its holdings in Fastenal by 19.9% during the 2nd quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP now owns 3,837,530 shares of the company’s stock valued at $241,161,000 after acquiring an additional 636,546 shares during the period. Finally, TD Asset Management Inc boosted its holdings in Fastenal by 21.2% during the 1st quarter. TD Asset Management Inc now owns 3,248,853 shares of the company’s stock valued at $250,617,000 after acquiring an additional 569,118 shares during the period. 81.38% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Insider Activity

In related news, CEO Daniel L. Florness sold 45,744 shares of Fastenal stock in a transaction on 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 sale, the chief executive officer now directly owns 286,018 shares in the company, valued at approximately $19,489,266.52. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this hyperlink. In other news, CEO Daniel L. Florness sold 50,000 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on 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 directly owns 286,018 shares in the company, valued at $19,929,734.24. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Also, CEO Daniel L. Florness sold 45,744 shares of Fastenal stock in a transaction on 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 completion of the transaction, the chief executive officer now directly owns 286,018 shares in the company, valued at $19,489,266.52. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Company insiders own 0.41% of the company’s stock.

Fastenal Stock Performance

Shares of FAST stock opened at $70.75 on Friday. Fastenal has a 12 month low of $53.83 and a 12 month high of $79.04. The company has a current ratio of 4.39, a quick ratio of 2.29 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.04. The company has a market cap of $40.51 billion, a P/E ratio of 35.20, a PEG ratio of 3.78 and a beta of 1.01. The firm has a fifty day moving average price of $68.05 and a 200 day moving average price of $68.45.

Fastenal (NASDAQ:FAST) last released its quarterly earnings data 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 the consensus estimate of $1.91 billion. Fastenal had a return on equity of 33.54% and a net margin of 15.54%. The business’s revenue for the quarter was up 1.8% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the prior year, the business posted $0.52 EPS. Sell-side analysts predict that Fastenal will post 2.04 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Fastenal Dividend Announcement

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, August 23rd. Stockholders of record on Friday, July 26th were given a dividend of $0.39 per share. The ex-dividend date was Friday, July 26th. This represents a $1.56 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 2.20%. Fastenal’s dividend payout ratio is presently 77.61%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

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