Boston Financial Mangement LLC boosted its position in Fastenal Company (NASDAQ:FAST) by 2.3% during the second quarter, Holdings Channel reports. The fund owned 189,243 shares of the company’s stock after buying an additional 4,201 shares during the period. Boston Financial Mangement LLC’s holdings in Fastenal were worth $8,238,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.
A number of other institutional investors have also recently made changes to their positions in FAST. FNY Managed Accounts LLC purchased a new position in shares of Fastenal during the first quarter worth about $133,000. Parkside Financial Bank & Trust boosted its position in shares of Fastenal by 0.3% in the first quarter. Parkside Financial Bank & Trust now owns 2,937 shares of the company’s stock worth $152,000 after buying an additional 9 shares during the last quarter. Clearbridge Investments LLC boosted its position in shares of Fastenal by 417.7% in the first quarter. Clearbridge Investments LLC now owns 3,277 shares of the company’s stock worth $169,000 after buying an additional 2,644 shares during the last quarter. CENTRAL TRUST Co boosted its position in shares of Fastenal by 13.4% in the second quarter. CENTRAL TRUST Co now owns 3,665 shares of the company’s stock worth $159,000 after buying an additional 433 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Advisory Services Network LLC purchased a new position in shares of Fastenal during the first quarter worth about $191,000. Institutional investors own 82.89% of the company’s stock.
Fastenal Company (NASDAQ:FAST) opened at 43.55 on Monday. The firm’s 50-day moving average is $43.32 and its 200 day moving average is $46.96. The company has a market cap of $12.54 billion, a PE ratio of 23.97 and a beta of 0.99. Fastenal Company has a 1-year low of $37.70 and a 1-year high of $52.74.
Fastenal (NASDAQ:FAST) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, July 12th. The company reported $0.52 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the Zacks’ consensus estimate of $0.50 by $0.02. Fastenal had a return on equity of 26.86% and a net margin of 12.71%. The business had revenue of $1.12 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $1.11 billion. During the same quarter in the previous year, the firm earned $0.46 earnings per share. The company’s revenue was up 10.6% on a year-over-year basis. Analysts predict that Fastenal Company will post $1.92 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.
Fastenal announced that its Board of Directors has authorized a share buyback program on Tuesday, July 11th that allows the company to buyback 5,000,000 outstanding shares. This buyback authorization allows the company to reacquire shares of its stock through open market purchases. Stock buyback programs are typically a sign that the company’s board believes its shares are undervalued.
The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, August 23rd. Stockholders of record on Wednesday, July 26th will be paid a dividend of $0.32 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, July 24th. This represents a $1.28 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 2.94%. Fastenal’s payout ratio is 70.33%.
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A number of brokerages recently issued reports on FAST. UBS AG upgraded shares of Fastenal from a “market perform” rating to an “outperform” rating in a research note on Wednesday, April 19th. Northcoast Research began coverage on shares of Fastenal in a research note on Tuesday, July 25th. They issued a “buy” rating and a $54.00 price target on the stock. Stifel Nicolaus reiterated a “hold” rating and issued a $46.00 price target (up previously from $45.00) on shares of Fastenal in a research note on Friday, July 14th. BMO Capital Markets upped their price target on shares of Fastenal from $49.00 to $51.00 and gave the stock a “no rating at time” rating in a research note on Friday, July 14th. Finally, BidaskClub upgraded shares of Fastenal from a “sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Wednesday, July 5th. Eight equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, nine have assigned a buy rating and two have assigned a strong buy rating to the stock. The stock has an average rating of “Buy” and a consensus target price of $50.20.
In other Fastenal news, CFO Holden Lewis purchased 1,000 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Monday, July 17th. The shares were acquired at an average price of $42.51 per share, for a total transaction of $42,510.00. Following the completion of the purchase, the chief financial officer now owns 2,000 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $85,020. The acquisition was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this link. Also, Director Daniel L. Johnson purchased 600 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Monday, July 24th. The shares were acquired at an average price of $42.71 per share, for a total transaction of $25,626.00. The disclosure for this purchase can be found here. Insiders have bought 3,600 shares of company stock worth $154,256 in the last 90 days. Insiders own 0.55% of the company’s stock.
Fastenal Company Profile
Fastenal Company is engaged in wholesale distribution of industrial and construction supplies. The Company is engaged in fastener distribution, and non-fastener maintenance and supply business. As of December 31, 2016, it distributed these supplies through a network of approximately 2,500 stores. Its customers are in the manufacturing and non-residential construction markets.
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