Quarry LP Invests $106,000 in Fastenal (NASDAQ:FAST)

Quarry LP acquired a new stake in shares of Fastenal (NASDAQ:FAST) during the second quarter, HoldingsChannel reports. The firm acquired 1,687 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $106,000.

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors also recently made changes to their positions in FAST. ProShare Advisors LLC boosted its stake in Fastenal by 497.3% during the 1st quarter. ProShare Advisors LLC now owns 3,099,333 shares of the company’s stock valued at $239,083,000 after purchasing an additional 2,580,478 shares in the last quarter. Baird Financial Group Inc. lifted its holdings in Fastenal by 15.2% in the 4th 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. Los Angeles Capital Management LLC boosted its position in shares of Fastenal by 46.2% during the 1st 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. Marshall Wace LLP grew its stake in shares of Fastenal by 4,008.2% in the 2nd quarter. Marshall Wace LLP now owns 756,241 shares of the company’s stock worth $47,522,000 after purchasing an additional 737,833 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Epoch Investment Partners Inc. raised its holdings in shares of Fastenal by 76.8% in the 4th quarter. Epoch Investment Partners Inc. now owns 1,690,801 shares of the company’s stock worth $109,513,000 after purchasing an additional 734,629 shares in the last quarter. 81.38% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

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

Insider Buying and Selling at Fastenal

In other 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 transaction, the chief executive officer now directly owns 286,018 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $19,489,266.52. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this hyperlink. In other Fastenal news, CEO Daniel L. Florness sold 50,000 shares of Fastenal stock in a transaction that occurred 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 in the company, valued at $19,929,734.24. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this hyperlink. Also, CEO Daniel L. Florness sold 45,744 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred 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 completion of the sale, the chief executive officer now directly owns 286,018 shares of the company’s stock, 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 Down 0.5 %

NASDAQ:FAST opened at $71.09 on Wednesday. The business’s fifty day moving average price is $68.45 and its 200 day moving average price is $68.22. The firm has a market capitalization of $40.70 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 35.37, a PEG ratio of 3.92 and a beta of 1.01. The company has a current ratio of 4.39, a quick ratio of 2.29 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.04. Fastenal has a 1-year low of $53.94 and a 1-year high of $79.04.

Fastenal (NASDAQ:FAST) last issued its earnings results on Friday, July 12th. The company reported $0.51 earnings per share for the quarter, meeting analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.51. The company 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 firm’s quarterly revenue was up 1.8% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the prior year, the company earned $0.52 EPS. On average, sell-side analysts forecast that Fastenal will post 2.04 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Fastenal Dividend Announcement

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, August 23rd. Shareholders of record on Friday, July 26th were given a $0.39 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, July 26th. This represents a $1.56 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 2.19%. Fastenal’s payout ratio is 77.61%.

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.