Fastenal (NASDAQ:FAST) Shares Bought by Absher Wealth Management LLC

Absher Wealth Management LLC boosted its holdings in shares of Fastenal (NASDAQ:FAST - Free Report) by 2.3% in the third quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm owned 332,530 shares of the company's stock after acquiring an additional 7,593 shares during the quarter. Fastenal accounts for 3.1% of Absher Wealth Management LLC's portfolio, making the stock its 17th biggest holding. Absher Wealth Management LLC owned about 0.06% of Fastenal worth $23,749,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other institutional investors have also modified their holdings of FAST. Legal & General Group Plc grew its stake in Fastenal by 3.4% in the second quarter. Legal & General Group Plc now owns 5,909,206 shares of the company's stock worth $371,334,000 after purchasing an additional 193,734 shares in the last quarter. Envestnet Asset Management Inc. grew its holdings in Fastenal by 1.4% during the 2nd quarter. Envestnet Asset Management Inc. now owns 4,665,482 shares of the company's stock worth $293,179,000 after acquiring an additional 66,130 shares in the last quarter. Thrivent Financial for Lutherans increased its position in Fastenal by 13.2% during the 2nd quarter. Thrivent Financial for Lutherans now owns 4,420,659 shares of the company's stock valued at $277,794,000 after purchasing an additional 517,172 shares during the period. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP increased its holdings in Fastenal by 19.9% during the second quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP now owns 3,837,530 shares of the company's stock valued at $241,161,000 after buying an additional 636,546 shares during the period. Finally, TD Asset Management Inc increased its holdings in shares of Fastenal by 21.2% in the 1st quarter. TD Asset Management Inc now owns 3,248,853 shares of the company's stock valued at $250,617,000 after acquiring an additional 569,118 shares during the period. 81.38% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of research firms recently commented on FAST. Morgan Stanley lifted their target price on shares of Fastenal from $72.00 to $76.00 and gave the stock an "equal weight" rating in a research note on Monday, October 14th. Stephens boosted their price objective on shares of Fastenal from $56.00 to $75.00 and gave the company an "equal weight" rating in a report on Monday, October 14th. Robert W. Baird raised their target price on Fastenal from $67.00 to $80.00 and gave the stock a "neutral" rating in a research note on Monday, October 14th. Jefferies Financial Group lowered their price target on Fastenal from $74.00 to $65.00 and set a "hold" rating for the company in a research report on Thursday, July 11th. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. raised 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. Seven investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and two have issued a buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, Fastenal currently has a consensus rating of "Hold" and a consensus target price of $73.33.

Insider Transactions at Fastenal

In other news, Director Rita J. Heise sold 10,888 shares of the company's stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, October 30th. The stock was sold at an average price of $77.67, for a total value of $845,670.96. Following the completion of the sale, the director now directly owns 20,000 shares in the company, valued at $1,553,400. This represents a 0.00 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this link. In related news, Director Rita J. Heise sold 10,888 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, October 30th. The shares were sold at an average price of $77.67, for a total transaction of $845,670.96. Following the completion of the sale, the director now directly owns 20,000 shares in the company, valued at approximately $1,553,400. This trade represents a 0.00 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this link. Also, VP John Lewis Soderberg sold 488 shares of Fastenal stock in a transaction on Monday, October 14th. The shares were sold at an average price of $76.32, for a total value of $37,244.16. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last three months, insiders have sold 190,261 shares of company stock valued at $13,874,979. Corporate insiders own 0.41% of the company's stock.

Fastenal Price Performance

Shares of FAST stock traded up $0.10 during mid-day trading on Friday, hitting $78.28. 1,618,432 shares of the stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 3,325,689. The company has a market cap of $44.85 billion, a PE ratio of 38.90, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 4.59 and a beta of 1.01. Fastenal has a 52-week low of $58.23 and a 52-week high of $79.04. The company has a quick ratio of 2.29, a current ratio of 4.40 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.03. The firm has a fifty day moving average of $71.74 and a 200 day moving average of $68.18.

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

Fastenal Announces Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, November 22nd. Stockholders of record on Friday, October 25th will be issued a dividend of $0.39 per share. This represents a $1.56 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.99%. The ex-dividend date is Friday, October 25th. Fastenal's payout ratio is 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.