Fastenal Company $FAST Shares Sold by Clearstead Advisors LLC

Clearstead Advisors LLC lessened its position in shares of Fastenal Company (NASDAQ:FAST) by 57.9% during the third quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The fund owned 30,650 shares of the company’s stock after selling 42,181 shares during the period. Clearstead Advisors LLC’s holdings in Fastenal were worth $1,503,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently bought and sold shares of the company. Avalon Trust Co bought a new stake in shares of Fastenal during the 3rd quarter worth about $99,000. Koshinski Asset Management Inc. raised its stake in Fastenal by 3.6% during the 3rd quarter. Koshinski Asset Management Inc. now owns 17,533 shares of the company’s stock valued at $860,000 after purchasing an additional 605 shares during the period. Bleakley Financial Group LLC lifted its stake in Fastenal by 4.2% in the 3rd quarter. Bleakley Financial Group LLC now owns 20,330 shares of the company’s stock worth $997,000 after acquiring an additional 819 shares in the last quarter. Lansforsakringar Fondforvaltning AB publ boosted its holdings in shares of Fastenal by 5.0% during the third quarter. Lansforsakringar Fondforvaltning AB publ now owns 378,757 shares of the company’s stock worth $18,574,000 after purchasing an additional 18,102 shares during the period. Finally, Advyzon Investment Management LLC increased its stake in shares of Fastenal by 109.1% in the third quarter. Advyzon Investment Management LLC now owns 10,044 shares of the company’s stock worth $493,000 after acquiring an additional 5,241 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 81.38% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Ratings Changes

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

Fastenal Stock Up 0.9%

Shares of Fastenal stock opened at $45.46 on Wednesday. The business has a fifty day simple moving average of $43.69 and a 200 day simple moving average of $44.39. The stock has a market cap of $52.20 billion, a PE ratio of 41.33, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.87 and a beta of 0.89. The company has a quick ratio of 2.41, a current ratio of 4.85 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.03. Fastenal Company has a 12 month low of $35.31 and a 12 month high of $50.63.

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

Fastenal Increases Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, February 26th. Shareholders of record on Thursday, January 29th will be paid a $0.24 dividend. This represents a $0.96 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.1%. The ex-dividend date is Thursday, January 29th. This is an increase from Fastenal’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.22. Fastenal’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 87.27%.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, Director Scott Satterlee sold 15,964 shares of Fastenal stock in a transaction dated Friday, January 23rd. The stock was sold at an average price of $44.19, for a total value of $705,449.16. Following the sale, the director owned 50,000 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $2,209,500. The trade was a 24.20% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through the SEC website. 0.37% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

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.