Rafferty Asset Management LLC Cuts Holdings in Fastenal Company $FAST

Rafferty Asset Management LLC lessened its position in shares of Fastenal Company (NASDAQ:FAST) by 7.8% in the third quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm owned 360,566 shares of the company’s stock after selling 30,707 shares during the period. Rafferty Asset Management LLC’s holdings in Fastenal were worth $17,682,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Brighton Jones LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Fastenal during the 4th quarter worth about $496,000. Integrated Wealth Concepts LLC increased its position in shares of Fastenal by 2.4% in the first quarter. Integrated Wealth Concepts LLC now owns 6,276 shares of the company’s stock worth $487,000 after acquiring an additional 147 shares in the last quarter. AlphaQuest LLC purchased a new position in shares of Fastenal in the 2nd quarter valued at $39,000. Flagship Harbor Advisors LLC raised its stake in shares of Fastenal by 93.2% in the 2nd quarter. Flagship Harbor Advisors LLC now owns 9,939 shares of the company’s stock valued at $417,000 after acquiring an additional 4,795 shares during the period. Finally, Spire Wealth Management lifted its holdings in shares of Fastenal by 1,334.3% during the 2nd quarter. Spire Wealth Management now owns 26,478 shares of the company’s stock valued at $1,105,000 after acquiring an additional 24,632 shares in the last quarter. 81.38% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several research analysts have commented on FAST shares. Barclays set a $43.00 price objective on Fastenal and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a research report on Wednesday, January 21st. Jefferies Financial Group set a $52.00 target price on Fastenal and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Monday, December 15th. UBS Group reissued a “neutral” rating and set a $46.00 price target on shares of Fastenal in a research report on Wednesday, January 21st. Weiss Ratings restated a “buy (b-)” rating on shares of Fastenal in a report on Monday, December 29th. Finally, Wolfe Research lifted their price objective on shares of Fastenal from $42.00 to $43.00 and gave the company an “underperform” rating in a research note on Friday. Four research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, seven have assigned a Hold rating and two have issued a Sell rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company currently has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $48.27.

Fastenal Stock Performance

FAST stock opened at $46.04 on Friday. The stock’s 50 day simple moving average is $43.88 and its 200 day simple moving average is $44.36. Fastenal Company has a 12-month low of $35.31 and a 12-month high of $50.63. The firm has a market cap of $52.87 billion, a P/E ratio of 41.85, a P/E/G ratio of 2.94 and a beta of 0.89. The company has a current ratio of 4.85, a quick ratio of 2.41 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.03.

Fastenal (NASDAQ:FAST) last released its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, January 20th. The company reported $0.26 earnings per share for the quarter, hitting the consensus estimate of $0.26. The firm had revenue of $2.03 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $2.04 billion. Fastenal had a net margin of 15.35% and a return on equity of 32.83%. Fastenal’s quarterly revenue was up 11.1% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the prior year, the business earned $0.46 earnings per share. As a group, equities research analysts predict that Fastenal Company will post 2.15 EPS for the current year.

Fastenal Increases Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, February 26th. Shareholders of record on Thursday, January 29th were paid a $0.24 dividend. The ex-dividend date was Thursday, January 29th. This is an increase from Fastenal’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.22. This represents a $0.96 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 2.1%. Fastenal’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 87.27%.

Insider Buying and Selling at Fastenal

In related news, Director Scott Satterlee sold 15,964 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, January 23rd. The stock was sold at an average price of $44.19, for a total value of $705,449.16. Following the sale, the director directly owned 50,000 shares in the company, valued at $2,209,500. This trade represents a 24.20% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this hyperlink. Company insiders own 0.37% of the company’s stock.

Fastenal Profile

Fastenal (NASDAQ: FAST) is a wholesale distributor of industrial and construction supplies, best known for its broad assortment of fasteners such as bolts, nuts, screws and anchors. Founded in Winona, Minnesota, Fastenal has grown from a regional supplier into a national and international distributor serving a wide range of end markets, including manufacturing, construction, maintenance, repair and operations (MRO), and government customers. The company is publicly traded and operates through a network of locally staffed branches combined with national distribution capabilities.

Product offerings extend beyond fasteners to include tools, safety and personal protective equipment, power transmission components, cutting and welding supplies, janitorial and material handling items, and other industrial consumables.