Fastenal (NASDAQ:FAST) Shares Bought by Avestar Capital LLC

Avestar Capital LLC grew its holdings in Fastenal (NASDAQ:FAST) by 7.9% during the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The fund owned 3,088 shares of the company’s stock after purchasing an additional 226 shares during the period. Avestar Capital LLC’s holdings in Fastenal were worth $222,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission.

A number of other hedge funds have also modified their holdings of the business. Aaron Wealth Advisors LLC acquired a new position in Fastenal in the third quarter valued at about $310,000. Comgest Global Investors S.A.S. lifted its holdings in shares of Fastenal by 73.0% in the 3rd quarter. Comgest Global Investors S.A.S. now owns 87,081 shares of the company’s stock worth $6,219,000 after acquiring an additional 36,742 shares during the last quarter. PNC Financial Services Group Inc. boosted its position in shares of Fastenal by 1.8% during the 3rd quarter. PNC Financial Services Group Inc. now owns 369,267 shares of the company’s stock worth $26,373,000 after purchasing an additional 6,488 shares during the period. Matrix Trust Co acquired a new stake in Fastenal in the 4th quarter valued at approximately $1,756,000. Finally, Franklin Resources Inc. raised its position in Fastenal by 3.8% in the third quarter. Franklin Resources Inc. now owns 4,572,999 shares of the company’s stock valued at $350,703,000 after purchasing an additional 165,423 shares during the period. 81.38% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Fastenal Price Performance

Fastenal stock opened at $74.78 on Friday. 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 company has a fifty day simple moving average of $74.65 and a 200-day simple moving average of $74.07. The stock has a market cap of $42.84 billion, a P/E ratio of 37.20, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 3.55 and a beta of 1.02. Fastenal has a 12-month low of $61.36 and a 12-month high of $84.88.

Fastenal (NASDAQ:FAST) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Friday, January 17th. The company reported $0.46 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.48 by ($0.02). The business had revenue of $1.82 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $1.84 billion. Fastenal had a return on equity of 32.55% and a net margin of 15.25%. The firm’s quarterly revenue was up 3.7% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period last year, the firm earned $0.46 earnings per share. Equities analysts expect that Fastenal will post 2.15 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Fastenal Increases Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, February 28th. Investors of record on Friday, January 31st will be issued a $0.43 dividend. This represents a $1.72 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 2.30%. This is an increase from Fastenal’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.39. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, January 31st. Fastenal’s dividend payout ratio is 85.57%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

FAST has been the subject of several research analyst reports. Stifel Nicolaus lowered their price target on Fastenal from $86.00 to $82.00 and set a “hold” rating for the company in a research report on Tuesday, January 21st. Hsbc Global Res downgraded Fastenal from a “hold” rating to a “moderate sell” rating in a research report on Wednesday, December 11th. Jefferies Financial Group increased their price target on shares of Fastenal from $74.00 to $85.00 and gave the stock a “hold” rating in a research report on Friday, December 6th. HSBC cut shares of Fastenal from a “hold” rating to a “reduce” rating and set a $70.00 price objective for the company. in a report on Wednesday, December 11th. Finally, UBS Group started coverage on shares of Fastenal in a report on Wednesday, November 13th. They set a “neutral” rating and a $88.00 target price on the stock. Two research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, eight have assigned a hold rating and one has given a buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $76.91.

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.