Spire Wealth Management Cuts Stock Position in Fastenal Company $FAST

Spire Wealth Management cut its position in shares of Fastenal Company (NASDAQ:FAST) by 88.8% during the 4th quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund owned 3,632 shares of the company’s stock after selling 28,805 shares during the quarter. Spire Wealth Management’s holdings in Fastenal were worth $146,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other large investors also recently modified their holdings of the company. Integrated Wealth Concepts LLC raised its position in Fastenal by 2.4% in the first quarter. Integrated Wealth Concepts LLC now owns 6,276 shares of the company’s stock worth $487,000 after acquiring an additional 147 shares during the period. Sowell Financial Services LLC boosted its holdings in Fastenal by 4.7% in the 3rd quarter. Sowell Financial Services LLC now owns 5,308 shares of the company’s stock worth $260,000 after buying an additional 238 shares during the period. L2 Asset Management LLC boosted its holdings in Fastenal by 4.8% in the 3rd quarter. L2 Asset Management LLC now owns 5,389 shares of the company’s stock worth $264,000 after buying an additional 248 shares during the period. Rowlandmiller & PARTNERS.ADV lifted its position in shares of Fastenal by 1.7% in the third quarter. Rowlandmiller & PARTNERS.ADV now owns 14,704 shares of the company’s stock valued at $721,000 after acquiring an additional 250 shares in the last quarter. Finally, SOA Wealth Advisors LLC. grew its position in shares of Fastenal by 71.6% during the third quarter. SOA Wealth Advisors LLC. now owns 611 shares of the company’s stock worth $30,000 after purchasing an additional 255 shares in the last quarter. 81.38% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Fastenal Price Performance

FAST stock opened at $46.30 on Friday. Fastenal Company has a 12 month low of $35.31 and a 12 month high of $50.63. The company has a current ratio of 4.85, a quick ratio of 2.41 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.03. The company has a 50-day moving average price of $45.71 and a 200 day moving average price of $43.81. The stock has a market cap of $53.17 billion, a PE ratio of 42.09, a P/E/G ratio of 2.94 and a beta of 0.84.

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

Fastenal Increases Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, February 26th. Shareholders of record on Thursday, January 29th were given a $0.24 dividend. This is a boost from Fastenal’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.22. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Thursday, January 29th. This represents a $0.96 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.1%. Fastenal’s dividend payout ratio is currently 87.27%.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other news, Director Reyne K. Wisecup sold 36,920 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Thursday, March 5th. The shares were sold at an average price of $47.34, for a total value of $1,747,792.80. Following the transaction, the director directly owned 40,000 shares in the company, valued at approximately $1,893,600. This represents a 48.00% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is accessible through the SEC website. Also, Director Scott Satterlee sold 15,964 shares of the firm’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 completion of the transaction, the director directly owned 50,000 shares in the company, valued at $2,209,500. This represents a 24.20% decrease in their position. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. Company insiders own 0.28% of the company’s stock.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of research analysts recently commented on FAST shares. Sanford C. Bernstein reissued an “underperform” rating on shares of Fastenal in a report on Wednesday, January 21st. UBS Group reissued a “neutral” rating and issued a $46.00 target price on shares of Fastenal in a report on Wednesday, January 21st. Robert W. Baird upped their target price on shares of Fastenal from $51.00 to $52.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research report on Friday, March 6th. Morgan Stanley reiterated a “positive” rating and issued a $45.00 price target on shares of Fastenal in a report on Thursday, March 5th. Finally, Benchmark restated a “buy” rating on shares of Fastenal in a report on Thursday, March 5th. Five research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, six have given a Hold rating and two have assigned a Sell rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the company has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $49.08.

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.