1,300 Shares in Fastenal Company $FAST Bought by Princeton Global Asset Management LLC

Princeton Global Asset Management LLC acquired a new stake in Fastenal Company (NASDAQ:FAST) in the 2nd quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor acquired 1,300 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $55,000.

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also made changes to their positions in the company. Brighton Jones LLC purchased a new position in Fastenal during the 4th quarter worth approximately $496,000. GAMMA Investing LLC grew its position in shares of Fastenal by 11.4% during the first quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC now owns 21,847 shares of the company’s stock worth $1,694,000 after acquiring an additional 2,240 shares during the last quarter. Kentucky Retirement Systems Insurance Trust Fund increased its holdings in shares of Fastenal by 72.2% in the 1st quarter. Kentucky Retirement Systems Insurance Trust Fund now owns 16,645 shares of the company’s stock valued at $1,291,000 after acquiring an additional 6,977 shares during the period. Stiles Financial Services Inc increased its holdings in shares of Fastenal by 3.2% in the 1st quarter. Stiles Financial Services Inc now owns 54,752 shares of the company’s stock valued at $4,246,000 after acquiring an additional 1,708 shares during the period. Finally, Oppenheimer & Co. Inc. raised its position in Fastenal by 42.4% in the 1st quarter. Oppenheimer & Co. Inc. now owns 56,836 shares of the company’s stock valued at $4,408,000 after purchasing an additional 16,915 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 81.38% of the company’s stock.

Fastenal Stock Performance

NASDAQ:FAST opened at $42.99 on Tuesday. The firm’s fifty day simple moving average is $47.74 and its 200-day simple moving average is $44.11. The company has a quick ratio of 2.19, a current ratio of 4.26 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.03. The stock has a market cap of $49.35 billion, a PE ratio of 40.18, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 3.87 and a beta of 0.94. Fastenal Company has a fifty-two week low of $35.31 and a fifty-two week high of $50.63.

Fastenal (NASDAQ:FAST) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Monday, October 13th. The company reported $0.29 EPS for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $0.30 by ($0.01). Fastenal had a net margin of 15.34% and a return on equity of 32.69%. The company had revenue of $2.13 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $2.13 billion. During the same quarter last year, the business earned $0.26 EPS. The firm’s revenue for the quarter was up 11.7% on a year-over-year basis. Analysts expect that Fastenal Company will post 2.15 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Fastenal Dividend Announcement

The company also recently declared 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 dividend yield of 2.0%. Fastenal’s dividend payout ratio is currently 82.24%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several brokerages have issued reports on FAST. Robert W. Baird lowered their price objective on shares of Fastenal from $53.00 to $49.00 and set an “outperform” rating on the stock in a research report on Tuesday, October 14th. Stephens raised their price target on Fastenal from $40.00 to $45.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a report on Tuesday, July 15th. Stifel Nicolaus set a $82.00 price objective on Fastenal in a research note on Thursday, July 3rd. Barclays set a $45.00 price objective on Fastenal and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a research report on Tuesday, October 14th. Finally, Loop Capital reissued a “hold” rating on shares of Fastenal in a report on Tuesday, July 15th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, four have given a Buy rating, nine have issued a Hold rating and one has assigned a Sell rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the company currently has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $46.50.

Insider Transactions at Fastenal

In other news, Director Hsenghung Sam Hsu purchased 1,000 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Thursday, October 16th. The stock was acquired at an average price of $42.45 per share, for a total transaction of $42,450.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the director directly owned 9,000 shares in the company, valued at $382,050. This represents a 12.50% increase in their position. The acquisition was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available through this link. Also, insider Jeffery Michael Watts sold 48,724 shares of Fastenal stock in a transaction on Friday, August 8th. The stock was sold at an average price of $48.05, for a total value of $2,341,188.20. Following the transaction, the insider directly owned 11,880 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $570,834. This trade represents a 80.40% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last quarter, insiders sold 90,178 shares of company stock valued at $4,336,603. Company insiders own 0.37% 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.