Fastenal (NASDAQ:FAST) Shares Sold by Empowered Funds LLC

Empowered Funds LLC trimmed its holdings in shares of Fastenal (NASDAQ:FAST - Free Report) by 25.3% in the third quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor owned 41,876 shares of the company's stock after selling 14,207 shares during the period. Empowered Funds LLC's holdings in Fastenal were worth $2,991,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other institutional investors have also recently modified their holdings of FAST. Ashton Thomas Securities LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Fastenal in the third quarter valued at $25,000. Central Valley Advisors LLC purchased a new position in Fastenal in the 2nd quarter valued at about $28,000. Moisand Fitzgerald Tamayo LLC lifted its holdings 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 purchasing an additional 428 shares in the last quarter. LRI Investments LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Fastenal during the first quarter worth about $39,000. Finally, First Personal Financial Services acquired a new position in shares of Fastenal in the third quarter valued at approximately $36,000. 81.38% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Insider Buying and Selling at Fastenal

In other news, CEO Daniel L. Florness sold 45,744 shares of the stock in a transaction dated 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 owns 286,018 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $19,489,266.52. This trade represents a 13.79 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Also, insider William Joseph Drazkowski sold 16,362 shares of the business's stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, October 16th. The shares were sold at an average price of $77.65, for a total value of $1,270,509.30. Following the completion of the sale, the insider now directly owns 5,997 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $465,667.05. This represents a 73.18 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold a total of 254,033 shares of company stock valued at $19,240,434 in the last three months. Corporate insiders own 0.41% of the company's stock.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of analysts recently issued reports on the stock. Bank of America started coverage on shares of Fastenal in a research report on Monday, October 7th. They set a "buy" rating and a $85.00 target price on the stock. JPMorgan Chase & Co. raised their price objective on Fastenal from $57.00 to $63.00 and gave the stock a "neutral" rating in a report on Thursday, October 10th. Morgan Stanley upped their target price on Fastenal from $72.00 to $76.00 and gave the company an "equal weight" rating in a research note on Monday, October 14th. Stephens raised their price target on Fastenal from $56.00 to $75.00 and gave the stock an "equal weight" rating in a research note on Monday, October 14th. Finally, Stifel Nicolaus reaffirmed a "buy" rating and set a $86.00 price objective (up previously from $80.00) on shares of Fastenal in a research note on Monday, October 14th. Eight equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and two have issued a buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, Fastenal has a consensus rating of "Hold" and an average target price of $74.80.

Fastenal Trading Down 0.3 %

FAST stock traded down $0.21 during midday trading on Tuesday, reaching $81.59. 2,009,489 shares of the company's stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 3,307,879. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.03, a current ratio of 4.40 and a quick ratio of 2.29. Fastenal has a fifty-two week low of $59.47 and a fifty-two week high of $84.88. The business has a 50-day moving average price of $75.49 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $69.43. The company has a market capitalization of $46.74 billion, a P/E ratio of 40.59, a PEG ratio of 4.80 and a beta of 0.99.

Fastenal (NASDAQ:FAST - Get Free Report) last announced its earnings results on Friday, October 11th. The company reported $0.52 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $0.51 by $0.01. The business had revenue of $1.91 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $1.90 billion. Fastenal had a return on equity of 33.30% and a net margin of 15.44%. The company's revenue was up 3.5% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period last year, the business posted $0.52 EPS. Equities research analysts forecast that Fastenal will post 2.03 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Fastenal Announces Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, November 22nd. Investors of record on Friday, October 25th will be paid a $0.39 dividend. This represents a $1.56 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.91%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, October 25th. Fastenal's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 77.61%.

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.