FineMark National Bank & Trust Purchases 7,244 Shares of Fastenal Company $FAST

FineMark National Bank & Trust raised its position in Fastenal Company (NASDAQ:FAST) by 69.5% in the 2nd quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the SEC. The institutional investor owned 17,670 shares of the company’s stock after purchasing an additional 7,244 shares during the period. FineMark National Bank & Trust’s holdings in Fastenal were worth $742,000 as of its most recent filing with the SEC.

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors also recently made changes to their positions in the company. Patton Fund Management Inc. acquired a new stake in Fastenal during the 2nd quarter worth approximately $229,000. Values First Advisors Inc. boosted its holdings in shares of Fastenal by 183.0% in the second quarter. Values First Advisors Inc. now owns 9,378 shares of the company’s stock valued at $394,000 after buying an additional 6,064 shares during the period. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. increased its position in shares of Fastenal by 8.9% during the first quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. now owns 22,615,915 shares of the company’s stock worth $1,753,864,000 after acquiring an additional 1,850,871 shares in the last quarter. Picton Mahoney Asset Management raised its holdings in shares of Fastenal by 7.5% during the first quarter. Picton Mahoney Asset Management now owns 181,482 shares of the company’s stock worth $14,074,000 after acquiring an additional 12,721 shares during the period. Finally, Optas LLC lifted its position in Fastenal by 100.2% in the 2nd quarter. Optas LLC now owns 13,712 shares of the company’s stock valued at $576,000 after acquiring an additional 6,863 shares in the last quarter. 81.38% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Fastenal Stock Performance

Shares of NASDAQ FAST opened at $39.55 on Thursday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.03, a quick ratio of 2.19 and a current ratio of 4.26. The stock has a 50 day moving average price of $44.24 and a 200 day moving average price of $44.39. The stock has a market capitalization of $45.40 billion, a PE ratio of 36.96, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 3.75 and a beta of 0.92. Fastenal Company has a 52 week low of $35.31 and a 52 week high of $50.63.

Fastenal (NASDAQ:FAST) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, October 14th. The company reported $0.29 earnings per share for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $0.30 by ($0.01). Fastenal had a return on equity of 32.69% and a net margin of 15.34%.The company had revenue of $2.13 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $2.13 billion. During the same period last year, the firm earned $0.26 EPS. The firm’s revenue for the quarter was up 11.7% compared to the same quarter last year. Analysts predict that Fastenal Company will post 2.15 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Fastenal Announces Dividend

The firm 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 dividend of $0.22 per share. The ex-dividend date is Tuesday, October 28th. This represents a $0.88 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 2.2%. Fastenal’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 82.24%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of equities analysts recently weighed in on the stock. Weiss Ratings reaffirmed a “buy (b)” rating on shares of Fastenal in a research note on Wednesday, October 8th. Baird R W raised Fastenal from a “hold” rating to a “strong-buy” rating in a research report on Thursday, August 7th. Sanford C. Bernstein assumed coverage on Fastenal in a report on Tuesday, November 11th. They set an “underperform” rating and a $38.00 price objective for the company. Northcoast Research started coverage on Fastenal in a research report on Thursday, August 21st. They issued a “neutral” rating on the stock. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. boosted their target price on Fastenal from $41.00 to $46.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research note on Thursday, September 4th. One analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, three have assigned a Buy rating, nine have given a Hold rating and two have given a Sell rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $46.32.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other Fastenal news, Director Hsenghung Sam Hsu acquired 1,000 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Thursday, November 13th. The shares were purchased at an average price of $49.58 per share, for a total transaction of $49,580.00. Following the completion of the purchase, the director directly owned 10,000 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $495,800. This represents a 11.11% increase in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through the SEC website. 0.37% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Fastenal 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.