Charles S. Miller Sells 23,480 Shares of Fastenal (NASDAQ:FAST) Stock

Fastenal (NASDAQ:FAST) VP Charles S. Miller sold 23,480 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, November 13th. The stock was sold at an average price of $83.92, for a total transaction of $1,970,441.60. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available at the SEC website.

Fastenal Stock Performance

NASDAQ FAST opened at $81.85 on Friday. The company has a market capitalization of $46.89 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 40.72, a PEG ratio of 4.90 and a beta of 0.99. Fastenal has a twelve month low of $59.47 and a twelve month high of $84.88. The stock has a fifty day simple moving average of $74.96 and a 200 day simple moving average of $69.22. The company has a quick ratio of 2.29, a current ratio of 4.40 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.03.

Fastenal (NASDAQ:FAST) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Friday, October 11th. The company reported $0.52 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.51 by $0.01. Fastenal had a return on equity of 33.30% and a net margin of 15.44%. The company had revenue of $1.91 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $1.90 billion. During the same period last year, the company earned $0.52 earnings per share. The firm’s revenue was up 3.5% compared to the same quarter last year. Sell-side analysts expect that Fastenal will post 2.03 EPS for the current year.

Fastenal Dividend Announcement

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, November 22nd. Stockholders of record on Friday, October 25th will be given a dividend of $0.39 per share. This represents a $1.56 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.91%. The ex-dividend date is Friday, October 25th. Fastenal’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 77.61%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several brokerages have recently issued reports on FAST. Stephens lifted their price target on Fastenal from $56.00 to $75.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a research note on Monday, October 14th. Robert W. Baird lifted their target price on Fastenal from $67.00 to $80.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research report on Monday, October 14th. Stifel Nicolaus restated a “buy” rating and issued a $86.00 price target (up from $80.00) on shares of Fastenal in a research note on Monday, October 14th. UBS Group initiated coverage on shares of Fastenal in a research report on Wednesday. They set a “neutral” rating and a $88.00 price objective for the company. Finally, 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 research report on Monday, October 14th. Eight analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and two have given a buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $74.80.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Fastenal

Hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently bought and sold shares of the company. Geode Capital Management LLC lifted its stake in shares of Fastenal by 5.6% in the 3rd quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 16,683,751 shares of the company’s stock valued at $1,188,251,000 after purchasing an additional 880,372 shares during the period. Brophy Wealth Management LLC bought a new stake in Fastenal in the third quarter worth approximately $716,000. Marshfield Associates lifted its stake in Fastenal by 0.5% in the third quarter. Marshfield Associates now owns 2,011,096 shares of the company’s stock valued at $143,632,000 after buying an additional 10,123 shares during the period. LRI Investments LLC boosted its holdings in shares of Fastenal by 169.4% during the 3rd quarter. LRI Investments LLC now owns 1,355 shares of the company’s stock worth $97,000 after buying an additional 852 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Hamilton Capital LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Fastenal during the 3rd quarter worth approximately $207,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 81.38% of the company’s stock.

About Fastenal

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.