11,916 Shares in Fastenal Company $FAST Bought by Empirical Financial Services LLC d.b.a. Empirical Wealth Management

Empirical Financial Services LLC d.b.a. Empirical Wealth Management acquired a new position in Fastenal Company (NASDAQ:FAST) in the third quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund acquired 11,916 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $584,000.

Other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently modified their holdings of the company. Vanguard Group Inc. lifted its position in Fastenal by 1.6% in the 3rd quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 151,515,539 shares of the company’s stock valued at $7,430,322,000 after purchasing an additional 2,346,045 shares during the last quarter. National Pension Service increased its stake in shares of Fastenal by 3.6% in the third quarter. National Pension Service now owns 1,558,579 shares of the company’s stock valued at $76,433,000 after purchasing an additional 53,888 shares during the period. Nordea Investment Management AB raised its holdings in shares of Fastenal by 6.3% during the third quarter. Nordea Investment Management AB now owns 3,713,469 shares of the company’s stock valued at $181,626,000 after buying an additional 219,154 shares during the last quarter. Fifth Third Wealth Advisors LLC raised its holdings in shares of Fastenal by 7,923.2% during the third quarter. Fifth Third Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 1,268,795 shares of the company’s stock valued at $62,222,000 after buying an additional 1,252,981 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Arjuna Capital acquired a new position in shares of Fastenal during the third quarter worth approximately $3,999,000. 81.38% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Fastenal Trading Down 2.5%

Shares of NASDAQ:FAST opened at $45.05 on Tuesday. The stock has a market capitalization of $51.73 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 40.95, a PEG ratio of 2.95 and a beta of 0.89. Fastenal Company has a 1-year low of $35.31 and a 1-year high of $50.63. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.03, a quick ratio of 2.41 and a current ratio of 4.85. The company has a 50 day moving average price of $43.62 and a 200 day moving average price of $44.41.

Fastenal (NASDAQ:FAST) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, January 20th. The company reported $0.26 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, meeting the consensus estimate of $0.26. The company had revenue of $2.03 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $2.04 billion. Fastenal had a return on equity of 32.83% and a net margin of 15.35%.The firm’s revenue was up 11.1% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the prior year, the company earned $0.46 earnings per share. On average, research analysts anticipate that Fastenal Company will post 2.15 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Fastenal Increases Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, February 26th. Investors of record on Thursday, January 29th will be given a $0.24 dividend. This is a positive change from Fastenal’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.22. The ex-dividend date is Thursday, January 29th. This represents a $0.96 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 2.1%. Fastenal’s dividend payout ratio is 87.27%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several analysts recently commented on FAST shares. UBS Group restated a “neutral” rating and issued a $46.00 target price on shares of Fastenal in a research report on Wednesday, January 21st. Robert W. Baird raised their price target on Fastenal from $49.00 to $51.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a report on Thursday, February 5th. Wolfe Research reduced their price objective on shares of Fastenal from $43.00 to $42.00 and set an “underperform” rating for the company in a report on Wednesday, January 21st. Weiss Ratings reissued a “buy (b-)” rating on shares of Fastenal in a research note on Monday, December 29th. Finally, Sanford C. Bernstein restated an “underperform” rating on shares of Fastenal in a research report on Wednesday, January 21st. Four research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, seven have assigned a Hold rating and two have given a Sell rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat, Fastenal currently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $48.18.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other Fastenal news, Director Scott Satterlee sold 15,964 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Friday, January 23rd. The stock was sold at an average price of $44.19, for a total transaction of $705,449.16. Following the sale, the director owned 50,000 shares in the company, valued at approximately $2,209,500. The trade was a 24.20% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Corporate insiders own 0.37% of the company’s stock.

Fastenal 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.