Sapient Capital LLC Buys New Shares in Fastenal Company $FAST

Sapient Capital LLC purchased a new stake in Fastenal Company (NASDAQ:FAST) during the 2nd quarter, Holdings Channel reports. The firm purchased 4,888 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $205,000.

Other large investors also recently modified their holdings of the company. 1248 Management LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Fastenal in the first quarter valued at about $36,000. Horizon Financial Services LLC grew its stake in Fastenal by 5,330.0% in the first quarter. Horizon Financial Services LLC now owns 543 shares of the company’s stock valued at $42,000 after purchasing an additional 533 shares in the last quarter. Zions Bancorporation National Association UT acquired a new position in shares of Fastenal during the 1st quarter worth approximately $49,000. TruNorth Capital Management LLC acquired a new position in shares of Fastenal during the 1st quarter worth approximately $57,000. Finally, Golden State Wealth Management LLC raised its stake in shares of Fastenal by 5,661.5% during the 1st quarter. Golden State Wealth Management LLC now owns 749 shares of the company’s stock worth $58,000 after purchasing an additional 736 shares in the last quarter. 81.38% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Fastenal Stock Performance

NASDAQ:FAST opened at $47.22 on Friday. The company has a market cap of $54.19 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 45.40, a PEG ratio of 4.29 and a beta of 0.97. Fastenal Company has a fifty-two week low of $34.69 and a fifty-two week high of $50.63. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.03, a quick ratio of 2.12 and a current ratio of 4.22. The stock has a fifty day moving average price of $47.76 and a 200-day moving average price of $42.82.

Fastenal (NASDAQ:FAST) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Monday, July 14th. The company reported $0.29 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.28 by $0.01. Fastenal had a return on equity of 32.33% and a net margin of 15.30%.The business had revenue of $2.08 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $2.07 billion. During the same quarter in the previous year, the firm earned $0.25 earnings per share. Fastenal’s revenue for the quarter was up 8.6% compared to the same quarter last year. As a group, equities analysts anticipate that Fastenal Company will post 2.15 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Fastenal Cuts Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, August 26th. Stockholders of record on Tuesday, July 29th were given a $0.22 dividend. The ex-dividend date was Tuesday, July 29th. This represents a $0.88 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.9%. Fastenal’s payout ratio is presently 84.62%.

Insider Activity

In related news, EVP John Lewis Soderberg sold 34,612 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, August 8th. The shares were sold at an average price of $48.03, for a total transaction of $1,662,414.36. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is accessible through this link. Also, EVP William Joseph Drazkowski sold 6,842 shares of Fastenal stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, August 15th. The shares were sold at an average price of $48.67, for a total transaction of $333,000.14. Following the completion of the transaction, the executive vice president directly owned 11,994 shares in the company, valued at $583,747.98. This trade represents a 36.32% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last 90 days, insiders sold 111,230 shares of company stock worth $5,288,364. Insiders own 0.37% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of brokerages recently weighed in on FAST. JPMorgan Chase & Co. boosted their target price on shares of Fastenal from $41.00 to $46.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a report on Thursday, September 4th. Wolfe Research reissued a “positive” rating on shares of Fastenal in a research report on Monday, July 14th. Loop Capital reaffirmed a “hold” rating on shares of Fastenal in a report on Tuesday, July 15th. Northcoast Research started coverage on Fastenal in a report on Thursday, August 21st. They set a “neutral” rating for the company. Finally, Stephens boosted their price target on Fastenal from $40.00 to $45.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a research report on Tuesday, July 15th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, four have given a Buy rating, eight have given a Hold rating and one has issued a Sell rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $46.82.

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.