Cerity Partners LLC Purchases 21,771 Shares of Fastenal (NASDAQ:FAST)

Cerity Partners LLC raised its holdings in Fastenal (NASDAQ:FAST - Free Report) by 12.4% during the third quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm owned 197,825 shares of the company's stock after purchasing an additional 21,771 shares during the quarter. Cerity Partners LLC's holdings in Fastenal were worth $14,129,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Aaron Wealth Advisors LLC purchased a new stake in Fastenal in the third quarter valued at $310,000. Comgest Global Investors S.A.S. raised its position in Fastenal by 73.0% in the third quarter. Comgest Global Investors S.A.S. now owns 87,081 shares of the company's stock valued at $6,219,000 after purchasing an additional 36,742 shares during the period. Cetera Investment Advisers raised its position in Fastenal by 499.7% in the first quarter. Cetera Investment Advisers now owns 132,046 shares of the company's stock valued at $10,186,000 after purchasing an additional 110,027 shares during the period. Wealth Enhancement Advisory Services LLC raised its position in Fastenal by 5.7% in the second quarter. Wealth Enhancement Advisory Services LLC now owns 210,998 shares of the company's stock valued at $13,259,000 after purchasing an additional 11,436 shares during the period. Finally, Peak Financial Advisors LLC purchased a new stake in Fastenal in the second quarter valued at $2,643,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 81.38% of the company's stock.

Insider Activity at Fastenal

In other Fastenal news, EVP Anthony Paul Broersma sold 680 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, October 16th. The stock was sold at an average price of $77.86, for a total value of $52,944.80. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this link. Also, CEO Daniel L. Florness sold 50,000 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Thursday, September 12th. The stock was sold at an average price of $69.68, for a total transaction of $3,484,000.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief executive officer now directly owns 286,018 shares of the company's stock, valued at $19,929,734.24. This trade represents a 14.88 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last 90 days, insiders sold 208,289 shares of company stock valued at $16,123,438. Insiders own 0.41% of the company's stock.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of equities research analysts have commented on FAST shares. Stifel Nicolaus restated a "buy" rating and issued a $86.00 target price (up previously from $80.00) on shares of Fastenal in a research report on Monday, October 14th. Bank of America initiated coverage on shares of Fastenal in a research report on Monday, October 7th. They issued a "buy" rating and a $85.00 price objective on the stock. Robert W. Baird increased their price target on shares of Fastenal from $67.00 to $80.00 and gave the stock a "neutral" rating in a research note on Monday, October 14th. Morgan Stanley increased their price target on Fastenal from $72.00 to $76.00 and gave the company an "equal weight" rating in a report on Monday, October 14th. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. boosted their price objective on Fastenal from $57.00 to $63.00 and gave the stock a "neutral" rating in a research note on Thursday, October 10th. Eight analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and two have assigned a buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, Fastenal currently has an average rating of "Hold" and an average price target of $74.80.

Fastenal Stock Down 0.0 %

Shares of NASDAQ:FAST traded down $0.04 during trading on Tuesday, reaching $83.71. 834,842 shares of the company traded hands, compared to its average volume of 3,280,566. The firm has a fifty day simple moving average of $76.53 and a 200 day simple moving average of $69.87. The firm has a market cap of $47.96 billion, a P/E ratio of 41.67, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 4.87 and a beta of 0.99. Fastenal has a 1-year low of $59.47 and a 1-year high of $84.88. 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 - Get Free Report) last released its quarterly earnings data on Friday, October 11th. The company reported $0.52 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $0.51 by $0.01. Fastenal had a net margin of 15.44% and a return on equity of 33.30%. The business had revenue of $1.91 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $1.90 billion. During the same quarter in the previous year, the business earned $0.52 EPS. Fastenal's quarterly revenue was up 3.5% compared to the same quarter last year. Analysts anticipate that Fastenal will post 2.03 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Fastenal Announces Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, November 22nd. Investors of record on Friday, October 25th were paid a $0.39 dividend. This represents a $1.56 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.86%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, October 25th. Fastenal's payout ratio is presently 77.61%.

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.