Goelzer Investment Management Inc. Cuts Stake in Fastenal (NASDAQ:FAST)

Goelzer Investment Management Inc. lessened its holdings in shares of Fastenal (NASDAQ:FAST) by 2.3% during the 3rd quarter, Holdings Channel reports. The firm owned 8,281 shares of the company’s stock after selling 193 shares during the period. Goelzer Investment Management Inc.’s holdings in Fastenal were worth $591,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other large investors also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the business. Penobscot Investment Management Company Inc. boosted its stake in Fastenal by 1.1% during the first quarter. Penobscot Investment Management Company Inc. now owns 13,350 shares of the company’s stock valued at $1,030,000 after buying an additional 150 shares during the last quarter. Sara Bay Financial grew its holdings in shares of Fastenal by 1.3% in the second quarter. Sara Bay Financial now owns 11,872 shares of the company’s stock valued at $746,000 after purchasing an additional 155 shares in the last quarter. Trueblood Wealth Management LLC increased its position in Fastenal by 1.4% in the second quarter. Trueblood Wealth Management LLC now owns 11,314 shares of the company’s stock worth $711,000 after purchasing an additional 156 shares during the last quarter. Team Hewins LLC raised its stake in Fastenal by 4.8% during the first quarter. Team Hewins LLC now owns 3,404 shares of the company’s stock valued at $263,000 after purchasing an additional 157 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Bleakley Financial Group LLC lifted its position in Fastenal by 2.0% during the first quarter. Bleakley Financial Group LLC now owns 8,173 shares of the company’s stock valued at $630,000 after purchasing an additional 159 shares during the last quarter. 81.38% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of analysts have recently weighed in on FAST shares. Stifel Nicolaus restated a “buy” rating and issued a $80.00 target price (down from $85.00) on shares of Fastenal in a report on Monday, July 15th. Morgan Stanley assumed coverage on Fastenal in a research report on Friday, September 6th. They set an “equal weight” rating and a $72.00 price objective on the stock. Jefferies Financial Group dropped their target price on Fastenal from $74.00 to $65.00 and set a “hold” rating for the company in a report on Thursday, July 11th. Finally, Stephens restated an “equal weight” rating and set a $56.00 price target on shares of Fastenal in a report on Monday, July 15th. Six equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and one has given a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat, Fastenal has an average rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $67.43.

Fastenal Trading Down 0.7 %

FAST opened at $70.18 on Friday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.04, a quick ratio of 2.29 and a current ratio of 4.39. The stock’s 50 day moving average price is $68.57 and its 200-day moving average price is $68.17. Fastenal has a one year low of $54.69 and a one year high of $79.04. The stock has a market cap of $40.18 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 34.92, a P/E/G ratio of 3.92 and a beta of 1.01.

Fastenal (NASDAQ:FAST) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Friday, July 12th. The company reported $0.51 EPS 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 the consensus estimate of $1.91 billion. During the same quarter in the prior year, the company posted $0.52 EPS. Fastenal’s quarterly revenue was up 1.8% on a year-over-year basis. On average, equities analysts forecast that Fastenal will post 2.04 EPS for the current year.

Fastenal Dividend Announcement

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, August 23rd. Investors of record on Friday, July 26th were paid a $0.39 dividend. This represents a $1.56 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.22%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, July 26th. Fastenal’s dividend payout ratio is presently 77.61%.

Insider Activity at Fastenal

In other Fastenal news, CEO Daniel L. Florness sold 45,744 shares of the firm’s 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 directly owns 286,018 shares in the company, valued at $19,489,266.52. This trade represents a 0.00 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available through the SEC website. In related news, CEO Daniel L. Florness sold 45,744 shares of Fastenal stock in a transaction that occurred 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 transaction, the chief executive officer now directly owns 286,018 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $19,489,266.52. This trade represents a 0.00 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available through this link. Also, CEO Daniel L. Florness sold 50,000 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Thursday, September 12th. The stock was sold at an average price of $69.68, for a total value of $3,484,000.00. Following the sale, the chief executive officer now owns 286,018 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $19,929,734.24. This represents a 0.00 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. 0.41% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

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.