MAI Capital Management Purchases 15,303 Shares of Fastenal Company $FAST

MAI Capital Management lifted its holdings in Fastenal Company (NASDAQ:FAST) by 123.8% during the second quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the SEC. The firm owned 27,660 shares of the company’s stock after purchasing an additional 15,303 shares during the period. MAI Capital Management’s holdings in Fastenal were worth $1,162,000 as of its most recent filing with the SEC.

Several other large investors have also made changes to their positions in the business. Brighton Jones LLC acquired a new position in shares of Fastenal during the fourth quarter worth approximately $496,000. Pinnacle Associates Ltd. grew its stake in shares of Fastenal by 3.1% in the first quarter. Pinnacle Associates Ltd. now owns 5,057 shares of the company’s stock worth $392,000 after acquiring an additional 154 shares during the last quarter. Avantax Advisory Services Inc. increased its position in Fastenal by 26.4% during the first quarter. Avantax Advisory Services Inc. now owns 42,767 shares of the company’s stock worth $3,317,000 after acquiring an additional 8,928 shares during the period. Cetera Investment Advisers raised its stake in Fastenal by 11.5% during the 1st quarter. Cetera Investment Advisers now owns 174,847 shares of the company’s stock valued at $13,559,000 after purchasing an additional 18,095 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Assetmark Inc. boosted its holdings in Fastenal by 15.4% in the 1st quarter. Assetmark Inc. now owns 5,811 shares of the company’s stock valued at $451,000 after purchasing an additional 774 shares during the period. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 81.38% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several research firms have recently issued reports on FAST. Sanford C. Bernstein assumed coverage on shares of Fastenal in a report on Tuesday, November 11th. They set an “underperform” rating and a $38.00 price objective on the stock. Wolfe Research raised 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. Barclays lowered their price target on Fastenal from $45.00 to $44.00 and set an “equal weight” rating on the stock in a research note on Thursday, November 13th. Baird R W upgraded Fastenal from a “hold” rating to a “strong-buy” rating in a research report on Thursday, August 7th. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. boosted their price objective on Fastenal from $41.00 to $46.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research report on Thursday, September 4th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, three have issued a Buy rating, nine have assigned a Hold rating and two have given a Sell rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company has an average rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $46.32.

Insider Activity

In other news, Director Hsenghung Sam Hsu bought 1,000 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, November 13th. The stock was acquired at an average price of $49.58 per share, for a total transaction of $49,580.00. Following the transaction, the director directly owned 10,000 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $495,800. This trade represents a 11.11% increase in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available through this link. Also, Director Sarah N. Nielsen purchased 1,000 shares of Fastenal stock in a transaction on Wednesday, November 19th. The stock was purchased at an average price of $39.60 per share, for a total transaction of $39,600.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the director owned 5,000 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $198,000. This represents a 25.00% increase in their ownership of the stock. The SEC filing for this purchase provides additional information. In the last ninety days, insiders bought 3,000 shares of company stock worth $131,630. 0.37% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Fastenal Stock Down 0.8%

NASDAQ FAST opened at $39.59 on Tuesday. Fastenal Company has a 1-year low of $35.31 and a 1-year high of $50.63. The company has a market capitalization of $45.45 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 37.00, a PEG ratio of 3.75 and a beta of 0.92. The stock’s 50 day moving average is $43.76 and its two-hundred day moving average is $44.41. The company has a current ratio of 4.26, a quick ratio of 2.19 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.03.

Fastenal (NASDAQ:FAST) last posted its earnings results on Tuesday, October 14th. The company reported $0.29 EPS for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $0.30 by ($0.01). The company had revenue of $2.13 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $2.13 billion. Fastenal had a return on equity of 32.69% and a net margin of 15.34%.Fastenal’s quarterly revenue was up 11.7% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter last year, the business earned $0.26 EPS. Equities analysts forecast that Fastenal Company will post 2.15 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Fastenal Announces Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, November 25th. Stockholders of record on Tuesday, October 28th will be paid a $0.22 dividend. This represents a $0.88 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 2.2%. The ex-dividend date is Tuesday, October 28th. Fastenal’s 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.