Fastenal (NASDAQ:FAST) Shares Gap Down Following Weak Earnings

Fastenal Company (NASDAQ:FAST)’s stock price gapped down before the market opened on Monday following a weaker than expected earnings announcement. The stock had previously closed at $45.78, but opened at $43.60. Fastenal shares last traded at $43.49, with a volume of 3,400,626 shares.

The company reported $0.29 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $0.30 by ($0.01). The business had revenue of $2.13 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $2.13 billion. Fastenal had a return on equity of 32.33% and a net margin of 15.30%.The firm’s revenue for the quarter was up 11.7% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the previous year, the business earned $0.26 earnings per share.

Fastenal Announces Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, November 25th. Shareholders of record on Tuesday, October 28th will be given a dividend of $0.22 per share. This represents a $0.88 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.1%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Tuesday, October 28th. Fastenal’s payout ratio is presently 84.62%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several analysts have weighed in on the company. Loop Capital reaffirmed a “hold” rating on shares of Fastenal in a research report on Tuesday, July 15th. Wolfe Research reaffirmed a “positive” rating on shares of Fastenal in a research report on Monday, July 14th. Weiss Ratings reaffirmed a “buy (b)” rating on shares of Fastenal in a research report on Wednesday, October 8th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. lifted their price objective on Fastenal from $41.00 to $46.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research report on Thursday, September 4th. Finally, Stifel Nicolaus set a $82.00 price objective on Fastenal in a research report on Thursday, July 3rd. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, four have issued a Buy rating, nine have given a Hold rating and one has assigned a Sell rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the company currently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $47.41.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other news, EVP John Lewis Soderberg sold 34,612 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, August 8th. The stock was sold at an average price of $48.03, for a total value of $1,662,414.36. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this link. Also, insider Jeffery Michael Watts sold 48,724 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred 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 completion of the sale, the insider directly owned 11,880 shares in the company, valued at approximately $570,834. This represents a 80.40% 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 valued at $5,288,364. 0.37% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Fastenal

A number of hedge funds have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Bartlett & CO. Wealth Management LLC raised its holdings in Fastenal by 21.2% in the 3rd quarter. Bartlett & CO. Wealth Management LLC now owns 10,899 shares of the company’s stock worth $534,000 after acquiring an additional 1,904 shares during the last quarter. AdvisorNet Financial Inc raised its holdings in Fastenal by 321.7% in the 3rd quarter. AdvisorNet Financial Inc now owns 2,960 shares of the company’s stock worth $145,000 after acquiring an additional 2,258 shares during the last quarter. Marshall Financial Group LLC raised its holdings in Fastenal by 4.5% in the 3rd quarter. Marshall Financial Group LLC now owns 23,203 shares of the company’s stock worth $1,138,000 after acquiring an additional 1,006 shares during the last quarter. Wedmont Private Capital raised its holdings in Fastenal by 4.4% in the 3rd quarter. Wedmont Private Capital now owns 18,803 shares of the company’s stock worth $892,000 after acquiring an additional 799 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Czech National Bank raised its holdings in Fastenal by 3.9% in the 3rd quarter. Czech National Bank now owns 291,476 shares of the company’s stock worth $14,294,000 after acquiring an additional 11,050 shares during the last quarter. 81.38% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Fastenal Stock Performance

The company has a market capitalization of $48.58 billion, a PE ratio of 40.70, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 4.15 and a beta of 0.94. The business’s fifty day moving average is $48.20 and its two-hundred day moving average is $43.97. The company has a current ratio of 4.22, a quick ratio of 2.12 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.03.

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.