Clark & Stuart Inc Buys New Shares in Fastenal (NASDAQ:FAST)

Clark & Stuart Inc acquired a new stake in shares of Fastenal (NASDAQ:FAST - Free Report) in the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the SEC. The firm acquired 114,316 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $8,220,000. Fastenal comprises 6.0% of Clark & Stuart Inc's holdings, making the stock its 4th largest position.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds have also modified their holdings of the stock. Ashton Thomas Securities LLC acquired a new stake in Fastenal in the third quarter valued at approximately $25,000. Knuff & Co LLC purchased a new position in shares of Fastenal during the 3rd quarter valued at approximately $27,000. Moisand Fitzgerald Tamayo LLC grew its stake in Fastenal by 1,019.0% in the 3rd quarter. Moisand Fitzgerald Tamayo LLC now owns 470 shares of the company's stock valued at $34,000 after acquiring an additional 428 shares during the period. First Personal Financial Services purchased a new stake in Fastenal in the 3rd quarter worth $36,000. Finally, CVA Family Office LLC raised its position in Fastenal by 51.0% during the third quarter. CVA Family Office LLC now owns 533 shares of the company's stock worth $38,000 after acquiring an additional 180 shares during the period. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 81.38% of the company's stock.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of analysts have recently commented on the stock. JPMorgan Chase & Co. boosted their target price on shares of Fastenal from $57.00 to $63.00 and gave the stock a "neutral" rating in a research note on Thursday, October 10th. Jefferies Financial Group boosted their price objective on Fastenal from $74.00 to $85.00 and gave the stock a "hold" rating in a research note on Friday, December 6th. Hsbc Global Res downgraded Fastenal from a "hold" rating to a "moderate sell" rating in a research report on Wednesday, December 11th. UBS Group started coverage on Fastenal in a research report on Wednesday, November 13th. They set a "neutral" rating and a $88.00 price target for the company. Finally, Bank of America assumed coverage on Fastenal in a report on Monday, October 7th. They issued a "buy" rating and a $85.00 price objective on the stock. One analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, eight have given a hold rating and one has given a buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock has an average rating of "Hold" and an average price target of $77.40.

Insider Transactions at Fastenal

In related news, CEO Daniel L. Florness sold 31,818 shares of the business's stock in a transaction on Monday, November 11th. The stock was sold at an average price of $84.50, for a total value of $2,688,621.00. Following the sale, the chief executive officer now owns 286,018 shares in the company, valued at approximately $24,168,521. The trade was a 10.01 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. Also, Director Daniel L. Johnson sold 8,474 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, November 13th. The shares were sold at an average price of $83.36, for a total value of $706,392.64. Following the transaction, the director now owns 10,595 shares of the company's stock, valued at $883,199.20. This trade represents a 44.44 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last ninety days, insiders sold 114,234 shares of company stock worth $9,272,924. 0.41% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Fastenal Trading Up 1.0 %

FAST stock traded up $0.72 during trading on Monday, reaching $72.35. 710,146 shares of the stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 2,208,168. The company has a current ratio of 4.40, a quick ratio of 2.29 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.03. The firm has a market capitalization of $41.45 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 36.00, a P/E/G ratio of 4.64 and a beta of 1.02. The business has a 50 day moving average price of $78.60 and a 200-day moving average price of $72.66. Fastenal has a 1 year low of $61.36 and a 1 year high of $84.88.

Fastenal (NASDAQ:FAST - Get Free Report) last released its quarterly earnings data on Friday, October 11th. The company reported $0.52 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts' consensus estimates of $0.51 by $0.01. The firm had revenue of $1.91 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $1.90 billion. Fastenal had a return on equity of 33.30% and a net margin of 15.44%. The firm's quarterly revenue was up 3.5% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the prior year, the firm posted $0.52 earnings per share. On average, research analysts predict that Fastenal will post 2.03 earnings per share for the current year.

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.