DA Davidson Reiterates Neutral Rating for Fastenal (NASDAQ:FAST)

Fastenal (NASDAQ:FAST)‘s stock had its “neutral” rating reaffirmed by research analysts at DA Davidson in a research note issued to investors on Wednesday,Benzinga reports. They presently have a $46.00 price target on the stock. DA Davidson’s price target would indicate a potential upside of 3.33% from the stock’s current price.

A number of other brokerages have also recently commented on FAST. Robert W. Baird reduced their target price on shares of Fastenal from $52.00 to $50.00 and set an “outperform” rating for the company in a report on Tuesday, April 14th. Rothschild & Co Redburn set a $55.00 target price on Fastenal and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Monday. Weiss Ratings reiterated a “buy (b)” rating on shares of Fastenal in a research report on Wednesday, July 8th. Barclays boosted their price target on Fastenal from $46.00 to $47.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a report on Monday, July 6th. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. raised their price objective on Fastenal from $46.00 to $47.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research note on Thursday, April 9th. Five equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, six have assigned a Hold rating and two have issued a Sell rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $48.58.

Fastenal Stock Down 2.7%

Shares of Fastenal stock opened at $44.52 on Wednesday. Fastenal has a twelve month low of $38.97 and a twelve month high of $50.63. The company has a quick ratio of 2.34, a current ratio of 4.39 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.03. The company’s 50 day moving average is $45.63 and its 200 day moving average is $45.11. The company has a market cap of $51.11 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 39.84, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.98 and a beta of 0.72.

Fastenal (NASDAQ:FAST) last posted its earnings results on Tuesday, July 14th. The company reported $0.33 EPS for the quarter, hitting analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.33. The business had revenue of $2.39 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $2.34 billion. Fastenal had a net margin of 15.39% and a return on equity of 33.25%. The firm’s revenue was up 14.7% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the previous year, the firm posted $0.29 EPS. Research analysts anticipate that Fastenal will post 1.24 EPS for the current year.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Fastenal

Several institutional investors have recently modified their holdings of the stock. State Street Corp grew its holdings in Fastenal by 1.2% during the 4th quarter. State Street Corp now owns 54,734,674 shares of the company’s stock worth $2,196,502,000 after acquiring an additional 631,889 shares in the last quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. raised its holdings in shares of Fastenal by 2.0% in the 4th quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. now owns 47,297,047 shares of the company’s stock valued at $1,898,031,000 after purchasing an additional 919,158 shares in the last quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC lifted its position in shares of Fastenal by 1.9% in the 4th quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 37,699,836 shares of the company’s stock worth $1,508,216,000 after purchasing an additional 685,047 shares during the period. Invesco Ltd. boosted its stake in shares of Fastenal by 14.0% during the third quarter. Invesco Ltd. now owns 18,215,875 shares of the company’s stock valued at $893,307,000 after purchasing an additional 2,242,116 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Bank of America Corp DE boosted its stake in shares of Fastenal by 12.0% during the first quarter. Bank of America Corp DE now owns 16,292,425 shares of the company’s stock valued at $755,969,000 after purchasing an additional 1,744,193 shares in the last quarter. 81.38% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Fastenal News Roundup

Here are the key news stories impacting Fastenal this week:

• Positive Sentiment: Rothschild & Co Redburn initiated coverage with a Buy rating and a $55 price target, suggesting upside from current levels. Article Title
• Positive Sentiment: William Blair kept a Buy rating, citing strong sales momentum, margin resilience, and expected second-half operating leverage. Article Title
• Neutral Sentiment: Morgan Stanley maintained a Hold rating with a $48 price target, reflecting a more cautious stance despite the solid quarter. Article Title
• Negative Sentiment: Several reports noted the stock falling after earnings as the market weighed in-line EPS against margin compression and softer-than-hoped profitability signals. Article Title

Fastenal Company Profile

Fastenal (NASDAQ: FAST) is a wholesale distributor of industrial and construction supplies, best known for its broad assortment of fasteners such as bolts, nuts, screws and anchors. Founded in Winona, Minnesota, Fastenal has grown from a regional supplier into a national and international distributor serving a wide range of end markets, including manufacturing, construction, maintenance, repair and operations (MRO), and government customers. The company is publicly traded and operates through a network of locally staffed branches combined with national distribution capabilities.

Product offerings extend beyond fasteners to include tools, safety and personal protective equipment, power transmission components, cutting and welding supplies, janitorial and material handling items, and other industrial consumables.