Fastenal (NASDAQ:FAST) Receives New Coverage from Analysts at Morgan Stanley

Morgan Stanley assumed coverage on shares of Fastenal (NASDAQ:FAST) in a research report report published on Friday, Marketbeat Ratings reports. The firm issued an equal weight rating and a $72.00 price target on the stock.

A number of other analysts also recently commented on the stock. Stifel Nicolaus reiterated a buy rating and issued a $80.00 target price (down from $85.00) on shares of Fastenal in a report on Monday, July 15th. Stephens restated an equal weight rating and issued a $56.00 target price on shares of Fastenal in a report on Monday, July 15th. Finally, Jefferies Financial Group reduced their target price on Fastenal from $74.00 to $65.00 and set a hold rating for the company in a report on Thursday, July 11th. Seven equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and one has issued a buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, Fastenal currently has an average rating of Hold and an average target price of $67.43.

Fastenal Trading Up 1.1 %

NASDAQ:FAST opened at $65.89 on Friday. The stock has a market cap of $37.73 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 32.78, a PEG ratio of 3.72 and a beta of 1.01. The business has a fifty day moving average of $66.71 and a 200-day moving average of $68.67. Fastenal has a 1 year low of $53.83 and a 1 year high of $79.04. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.04, a quick ratio of 2.29 and a current ratio of 4.39.

Fastenal (NASDAQ:FAST) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Friday, July 12th. The company reported $0.51 EPS for the quarter, meeting analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.51. The business had revenue of $1.92 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $1.91 billion. Fastenal had a net margin of 15.54% and a return on equity of 33.54%. The business’s revenue for the quarter was up 1.8% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter last year, the business earned $0.52 earnings per share. Equities analysts predict that Fastenal will post 2.04 earnings per share for the current year.

Fastenal Announces Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, August 23rd. Investors of record on Friday, July 26th were issued a dividend of $0.39 per share. This represents a $1.56 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 2.37%. The ex-dividend date was Friday, July 26th. Fastenal’s dividend payout ratio is currently 77.61%.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other news, CEO Daniel L. Florness sold 45,744 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Wednesday, August 21st. The shares were sold at an average price of $68.14, for a total value of $3,116,996.16. Following the transaction, the chief executive officer now directly owns 286,018 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $19,489,266.52. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this hyperlink. In other Fastenal news, Director Hsenghung Sam Hsu purchased 500 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Monday, June 10th. The shares were bought at an average price of $63.28 per share, for a total transaction of $31,640.00. Following the purchase, the director now directly owns 3,500 shares in the company, valued at approximately $221,480. The purchase was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this hyperlink. Also, CEO Daniel L. Florness sold 45,744 shares of Fastenal stock in a transaction on 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 completion of the sale, the chief executive officer now directly owns 286,018 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $19,489,266.52. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders own 0.41% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Trading of Fastenal

Institutional investors and hedge funds have recently made changes to their positions in the stock. Penobscot Investment Management Company Inc. grew its stake in Fastenal by 1.1% in the 1st quarter. Penobscot Investment Management Company Inc. now owns 13,350 shares of the company’s stock valued at $1,030,000 after buying an additional 150 shares during the last quarter. Panagora Asset Management Inc. grew its position in shares of Fastenal by 0.8% in the fourth quarter. Panagora Asset Management Inc. now owns 19,095 shares of the company’s stock valued at $1,237,000 after purchasing an additional 152 shares during the last quarter. Sara Bay Financial increased its stake in shares of Fastenal by 1.3% in the second quarter. Sara Bay Financial now owns 11,872 shares of the company’s stock worth $746,000 after purchasing an additional 155 shares during the period. Trueblood Wealth Management LLC lifted its position in shares of Fastenal by 1.4% during the 2nd quarter. Trueblood Wealth Management LLC now owns 11,314 shares of the company’s stock worth $711,000 after purchasing an additional 156 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Team Hewins LLC boosted its stake in Fastenal by 4.8% during the 1st quarter. Team Hewins LLC now owns 3,404 shares of the company’s stock valued at $263,000 after purchasing an additional 157 shares during the period. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 81.38% of the company’s stock.

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.