Fastenal (NASDAQ:FAST) Shares Sold by TCM Advisors LLC

TCM Advisors LLC lowered its stake in Fastenal (NASDAQ:FAST - Free Report) by 20.0% in the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the SEC. The institutional investor owned 13,600 shares of the company's stock after selling 3,400 shares during the quarter. TCM Advisors LLC's holdings in Fastenal were worth $978,000 as of its most recent filing with the SEC.

Several other hedge funds have also modified their holdings of FAST. OFI Invest Asset Management purchased a new stake in shares of Fastenal during the fourth quarter worth about $46,000. Whipplewood Advisors LLC purchased a new stake in Fastenal during the 4th quarter worth approximately $49,000. SBI Securities Co. Ltd. acquired a new position in shares of Fastenal in the 4th quarter valued at approximately $49,000. R Squared Ltd purchased a new position in shares of Fastenal during the 4th quarter valued at approximately $68,000. Finally, Eastern Bank grew its position in shares of Fastenal by 440.7% during the fourth quarter. Eastern Bank now owns 984 shares of the company's stock worth $71,000 after buying an additional 802 shares in the last quarter. 81.38% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several research firms recently issued reports on FAST. Stifel Nicolaus cut their price target on shares of Fastenal from $86.00 to $82.00 and set a "hold" rating on the stock in a report on Tuesday, January 21st. Wolfe Research raised shares of Fastenal from an "underperform" rating to a "peer perform" rating in a research report on Thursday, April 3rd. Stephens lifted their price target on Fastenal from $75.00 to $80.00 and gave the stock an "equal weight" rating in a research note on Tuesday. William Blair upgraded Fastenal from a "market perform" rating to an "outperform" rating in a research note on Monday, March 10th. Finally, Robert W. Baird lifted their target price on Fastenal from $80.00 to $86.00 and gave the stock a "neutral" rating in a research report on Monday. One analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, eight have issued a hold rating and two have given a buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock has an average rating of "Hold" and a consensus target price of $79.10.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other Fastenal news, EVP William Joseph Drazkowski sold 15,000 shares of the stock in a transaction on Monday, April 14th. The stock was sold at an average price of $81.31, for a total transaction of $1,219,650.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the executive vice president now directly owns 5,997 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $487,616.07. This trade represents a 71.44 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. Corporate insiders own 0.37% of the company's stock.

Fastenal Stock Performance

Fastenal stock traded up $1.09 during midday trading on Friday, reaching $81.54. 3,497,558 shares of the stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 3,092,607. Fastenal has a fifty-two week low of $61.36 and a fifty-two week high of $84.88. The company has a current ratio of 4.67, a quick ratio of 2.28 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.03. The firm has a market cap of $46.76 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 40.56, a PEG ratio of 3.58 and a beta of 1.05. The firm has a fifty day moving average price of $76.14 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $76.57.

Fastenal (NASDAQ:FAST - Get Free Report) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Friday, April 11th. The company reported $0.52 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, hitting the consensus estimate of $0.52. Fastenal had a return on equity of 32.55% and a net margin of 15.25%. The business had revenue of $1.96 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $1.94 billion. During the same period in the previous year, the firm posted $0.52 earnings per share. The business's revenue was up 3.4% on a year-over-year basis. On average, equities research analysts forecast that Fastenal will post 2.15 earnings per share for the current year.

Fastenal Increases Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, May 23rd. Stockholders of record on Friday, April 25th will be issued a dividend of $0.44 per share. This represents a $1.76 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 2.16%. This is a positive change from Fastenal's previous quarterly dividend of $0.43. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, April 25th. Fastenal's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 87.56%.

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.