20,535 Shares in Fastenal Company $FAST Bought by Financial Consulate Inc.

Financial Consulate Inc. acquired a new stake in Fastenal Company (NASDAQ:FAST) during the third quarter, according to its most recent filing with the SEC. The firm acquired 20,535 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $1,007,000.

A number of other large investors also recently bought and sold shares of the company. Salomon & Ludwin LLC boosted its holdings in shares of Fastenal by 28.1% in the third quarter. Salomon & Ludwin LLC now owns 1,258 shares of the company’s stock valued at $60,000 after acquiring an additional 276 shares in the last quarter. McElhenny Sheffield Capital Management LLC acquired a new stake in Fastenal in the third quarter valued at about $202,000. Mather Group LLC. lifted its position in Fastenal by 5.1% in the third quarter. Mather Group LLC. now owns 8,166 shares of the company’s stock valued at $400,000 after purchasing an additional 396 shares during the period. Accurate Wealth Management LLC purchased a new stake in Fastenal in the 3rd quarter valued at approximately $294,000. Finally, Merit Financial Group LLC increased its position in Fastenal by 0.9% during the 3rd quarter. Merit Financial Group LLC now owns 401,040 shares of the company’s stock worth $19,667,000 after purchasing an additional 3,547 shares during the period. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 81.38% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several analysts have recently commented on FAST shares. Sanford C. Bernstein reissued an “underperform” rating on shares of Fastenal in a report on Monday. UBS Group raised Fastenal from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating and raised their target price for the company from $45.00 to $52.00 in a report on Monday, December 15th. Wolfe Research upgraded shares of Fastenal from an “underperform” rating to a “peer perform” rating and set a $43.00 target price on the stock in a research report on Thursday, November 13th. Weiss Ratings reaffirmed a “buy (b-)” rating on shares of Fastenal in a research note on Monday. Finally, Robert W. Baird reduced their price objective on shares of Fastenal from $53.00 to $49.00 and set an “outperform” rating for the company in a research note on Tuesday, October 14th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, five have assigned a Buy rating, eight have issued a Hold rating and one has issued a Sell rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, Fastenal presently has an average rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $48.73.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other Fastenal news, Director Hsenghung Sam Hsu acquired 1,000 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Thursday, November 13th. The stock was acquired at an average cost of $49.58 per share, with a total value of $49,580.00. Following the purchase, the director directly owned 10,000 shares in the company, valued at approximately $495,800. This trade represents a 11.11% increase in their position. The acquisition was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available through this link. Also, Director Sarah N. Nielsen bought 1,000 shares of Fastenal stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, November 19th. The stock was bought at an average cost of $39.60 per share, for a total transaction of $39,600.00. Following the purchase, the director owned 5,000 shares in the company, valued at $198,000. This represents a 25.00% increase in their position. Additional details regarding this purchase are available in the official SEC disclosure. Over the last three months, insiders have bought 3,000 shares of company stock valued at $131,630. Corporate insiders own 0.37% of the company’s stock.

Fastenal Trading Down 1.8%

Shares of FAST stock opened at $40.13 on Friday. Fastenal Company has a fifty-two week low of $35.31 and a fifty-two week high of $50.63. The stock has a market cap of $46.07 billion, a P/E ratio of 37.51, a P/E/G ratio of 3.21 and a beta of 0.90. The business has a fifty day simple moving average of $41.07 and a 200-day simple moving average of $44.37. 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 released its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, October 14th. The company reported $0.29 EPS 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 business had revenue of $2.13 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $2.13 billion. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm earned $0.26 earnings per share. Fastenal’s quarterly revenue was up 11.7% on a year-over-year basis. On average, analysts forecast 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 was paid on Tuesday, November 25th. Stockholders of record on Tuesday, October 28th were given a $0.22 dividend. The ex-dividend date was Tuesday, October 28th. This represents a $0.88 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 2.2%. Fastenal’s dividend payout ratio is currently 82.24%.

About Fastenal

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.