Generali Asset Management SPA SGR Reduces Stake in Fastenal Company $FAST

Generali Asset Management SPA SGR reduced its position in Fastenal Company (NASDAQ:FAST) by 35.5% in the 2nd quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor owned 33,855 shares of the company’s stock after selling 18,632 shares during the period. Generali Asset Management SPA SGR’s holdings in Fastenal were worth $1,422,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other hedge funds also recently bought and sold shares of the company. Riverview Trust Co increased its position in Fastenal by 100.0% during the second quarter. Riverview Trust Co now owns 584 shares of the company’s stock worth $25,000 after buying an additional 292 shares in the last quarter. Hilltop National Bank purchased a new position in Fastenal during the second quarter worth $27,000. Armstrong Advisory Group Inc. increased its position in Fastenal by 100.0% during the second quarter. Armstrong Advisory Group Inc. now owns 696 shares of the company’s stock worth $29,000 after buying an additional 348 shares in the last quarter. AdvisorNet Financial Inc increased its position in Fastenal by 95.0% during the second quarter. AdvisorNet Financial Inc now owns 702 shares of the company’s stock worth $29,000 after buying an additional 342 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Clean Yield Group increased its position in Fastenal by 100.0% during the second quarter. Clean Yield Group now owns 696 shares of the company’s stock worth $29,000 after buying an additional 348 shares in the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 81.38% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several equities analysts have weighed in on the company. Northcoast Research assumed coverage on Fastenal in a research report on Thursday, August 21st. They set a “neutral” rating for the company. Wolfe Research reaffirmed a “positive” rating on shares of Fastenal in a research report on Monday, July 14th. Stifel Nicolaus set a $82.00 price objective on Fastenal in a research report on Thursday, July 3rd. Morgan Stanley set a $40.00 price objective on Fastenal and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a research report on Thursday, July 3rd. Finally, Weiss Ratings reaffirmed a “buy (b)” rating on shares of Fastenal in a research report on Wednesday, October 8th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, four have given a Buy rating, nine have given a Hold rating and one has assigned a Sell rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, Fastenal currently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $46.50.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other Fastenal news, insider Jeffery Michael Watts sold 48,724 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Friday, August 8th. The stock was sold at an average price of $48.05, for a total transaction of $2,341,188.20. Following the transaction, the insider owned 11,880 shares in the company, valued at $570,834. The trade was a 80.40% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available through this hyperlink. Also, EVP William Joseph Drazkowski sold 6,842 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Friday, August 15th. The stock was sold at an average price of $48.67, for a total value of $333,000.14. Following the transaction, the executive vice president owned 11,994 shares in the company, valued at approximately $583,747.98. This represents a 36.32% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last ninety days, insiders have sold 90,178 shares of company stock worth $4,336,603. Company insiders own 0.37% of the company’s stock.

Fastenal Price Performance

Shares of Fastenal stock opened at $42.46 on Friday. Fastenal Company has a twelve month low of $35.31 and a twelve month high of $50.63. The stock has a market capitalization of $48.73 billion, a P/E ratio of 39.68, a PEG ratio of 3.83 and a beta of 0.94. The company has a current ratio of 4.26, a quick ratio of 2.12 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.03. The business’s fifty day moving average price is $47.83 and its 200 day moving average price is $44.00.

Fastenal (NASDAQ:FAST) last issued its earnings results on Monday, October 13th. The company reported $0.29 earnings per share for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.30 by ($0.01). Fastenal had a net margin of 15.34% and a return on equity of 32.69%. The firm had revenue of $2.13 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $2.13 billion. During the same quarter in the previous year, the business posted $0.26 EPS. Fastenal’s revenue was up 11.7% compared to the same quarter last year. As a group, research analysts anticipate that Fastenal Company will post 2.15 earnings per share for the current year.

Fastenal Announces Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, November 25th. Investors of record on Tuesday, October 28th will be issued a $0.22 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Tuesday, October 28th. This represents a $0.88 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 2.1%. Fastenal’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 82.24%.

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.