Assetmark Inc. Acquires 10,084 Shares of Fastenal Company $FAST

Assetmark Inc. boosted its holdings in shares of Fastenal Company (NASDAQ:FAST) by 173.5% in the second quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm owned 15,895 shares of the company’s stock after purchasing an additional 10,084 shares during the period. Assetmark Inc.’s holdings in Fastenal were worth $668,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other institutional investors also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Envestnet Asset Management Inc. lifted its position in shares of Fastenal by 103.5% during the 2nd quarter. Envestnet Asset Management Inc. now owns 9,734,500 shares of the company’s stock worth $408,849,000 after buying an additional 4,950,503 shares during the period. Cantillon Capital Management LLC lifted its holdings in shares of Fastenal by 94.4% during the second quarter. Cantillon Capital Management LLC now owns 9,298,033 shares of the company’s stock valued at $390,517,000 after acquiring an additional 4,513,985 shares during the period. Blair William & Co. IL boosted its stake in shares of Fastenal by 107.2% in the 2nd quarter. Blair William & Co. IL now owns 6,822,973 shares of the company’s stock valued at $286,565,000 after purchasing an additional 3,530,339 shares in the last quarter. TD Asset Management Inc boosted its stake in shares of Fastenal by 90.0% in the 2nd quarter. TD Asset Management Inc now owns 4,934,558 shares of the company’s stock valued at $207,251,000 after purchasing an additional 2,337,187 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Fenimore Asset Management Inc grew its holdings in shares of Fastenal by 101.0% in the 2nd quarter. Fenimore Asset Management Inc now owns 3,747,704 shares of the company’s stock worth $157,404,000 after purchasing an additional 1,883,419 shares during the last quarter. 81.38% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several equities analysts recently issued reports on FAST shares. Barclays set a $45.00 price target on shares of Fastenal and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a report on Tuesday, October 14th. Wolfe Research reiterated a “positive” rating on shares of Fastenal in a research note on Monday, July 14th. Robert W. Baird decreased their price target on Fastenal from $53.00 to $49.00 and set an “outperform” rating on the stock in a research report on Tuesday, October 14th. Loop Capital reaffirmed a “hold” rating on shares of Fastenal in a report on Tuesday, July 15th. Finally, Northcoast Research started coverage on Fastenal in a research note on Thursday, August 21st. They issued a “neutral” rating on the stock. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, four have issued a Buy rating, nine have issued a Hold rating and one has given a Sell rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the company presently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $46.50.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, Director Hsenghung Sam Hsu purchased 1,000 shares of Fastenal stock in a transaction dated Thursday, October 16th. The shares were acquired at an average cost of $42.45 per share, for a total transaction of $42,450.00. Following the transaction, the director directly owned 9,000 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $382,050. This trade represents a 12.50% increase in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available at this link. Also, EVP William Joseph Drazkowski sold 6,842 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Friday, August 15th. The shares were sold at an average price of $48.67, for a total value of $333,000.14. Following the completion of the sale, the executive vice president owned 11,994 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $583,747.98. This represents a 36.32% decrease in their position. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. 0.37% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Fastenal Trading Down 2.2%

Shares of FAST opened at $40.77 on Friday. The stock’s fifty day simple moving average is $45.75 and its 200-day simple moving average is $44.35. The firm has a market capitalization of $46.81 billion, a PE ratio of 38.10, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 3.75 and a beta of 0.92. Fastenal Company has a 12-month low of $35.31 and a 12-month high of $50.63. The company has a quick ratio of 2.19, a current ratio of 4.26 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.03.

Fastenal (NASDAQ:FAST) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Monday, October 13th. The company reported $0.29 EPS for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.30 by ($0.01). Fastenal had a return on equity of 32.69% and a net margin of 15.34%.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 earned $0.26 earnings per share. Fastenal’s revenue for the quarter was up 11.7% compared to the same quarter last year. As a group, research analysts predict that Fastenal Company will post 2.15 earnings per share for the current year.

Fastenal Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently disclosed 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. This represents a $0.88 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.2%. The ex-dividend date is Tuesday, October 28th. Fastenal’s dividend payout ratio is currently 82.24%.

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.