Trust Point Inc. Boosts Stake in Fastenal Company $FAST

Trust Point Inc. grew its position in shares of Fastenal Company (NASDAQ:FAST) by 27.0% in the 2nd quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund owned 206,812 shares of the company’s stock after acquiring an additional 44,028 shares during the quarter. Fastenal comprises 0.8% of Trust Point Inc.’s portfolio, making the stock its 19th biggest position. Trust Point Inc.’s holdings in Fastenal were worth $9,933,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other institutional investors have also modified their holdings of FAST. Wiregrass Investment Management LLC acquired a new position in shares of Fastenal during the fourth quarter worth $1,020,000. LBP AM SA grew its holdings in Fastenal by 11.8% during the 4th quarter. LBP AM SA now owns 232,847 shares of the company’s stock valued at $9,344,000 after purchasing an additional 24,536 shares in the last quarter. Swiss Life Asset Management Ltd grew its holdings in Fastenal by 2.7% during the 4th quarter. Swiss Life Asset Management Ltd now owns 1,491,994 shares of the company’s stock valued at $59,874,000 after purchasing an additional 39,406 shares in the last quarter. Fideuram Asset Management Ireland dac purchased a new stake in Fastenal during the 4th quarter worth $4,041,000. Finally, National Pension Service lifted its holdings in Fastenal by 2.9% in the 4th quarter. National Pension Service now owns 1,603,839 shares of the company’s stock worth $64,362,000 after buying an additional 45,260 shares in the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 81.38% of the company’s stock.

Insider Buying and Selling at Fastenal

In other Fastenal news, Director Michael J. Ancius sold 3,000 shares of the stock in a transaction on Tuesday, July 28th. The shares were sold at an average price of $49.00, for a total transaction of $147,000.00. Following the sale, the director directly owned 58,690 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $2,875,810. This represents a 4.86% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at the SEC website. Also, Director Rita J. Heise sold 34,964 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, August 5th. The stock was sold at an average price of $50.05, for a total transaction of $1,749,948.20. Following the completion of the transaction, the director owned 20,000 shares in the company, valued at approximately $1,001,000. The trade was a 63.61% decrease in their ownership of the stock. Additional details regarding this sale are available in the official SEC disclosure. 0.28% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Analyst Ratings Changes

FAST has been the subject of a number of analyst reports. Wolfe Research reissued an “underperform” rating and issued a $47.00 price objective on shares of Fastenal in a research report on Thursday, July 9th. Rothschild & Co Redburn set a $55.00 price target on Fastenal and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Monday, July 13th. DA Davidson restated a “neutral” rating and set a $46.00 price objective on shares of Fastenal in a research note on Wednesday, July 15th. Bank of America lifted their price objective on Fastenal from $48.00 to $55.00 in a report on Monday, April 13th. Finally, Jefferies Financial Group reaffirmed a “buy” rating on shares of Fastenal in a research report on Thursday, June 4th. Five investment analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, six have given a Hold rating and two have given a Sell rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock presently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $49.17.

Fastenal Stock Up 2.0%

Shares of Fastenal stock opened at $51.84 on Friday. The business has a 50-day moving average price of $46.87 and a 200 day moving average price of $45.83. Fastenal Company has a fifty-two week low of $38.97 and a fifty-two week high of $51.90. The firm has a market cap of $59.49 billion, a P/E ratio of 43.93, a P/E/G ratio of 3.17 and a beta of 0.72. The company has a quick ratio of 2.21, a current ratio of 4.18 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.01.

Fastenal (NASDAQ:FAST) last released its earnings results on Tuesday, July 14th. The company reported $0.33 EPS for the quarter, hitting analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.33. The company had revenue of $2.39 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $2.34 billion. Fastenal had a return on equity of 34.03% and a net margin of 15.45%.Fastenal’s quarterly revenue was up 14.7% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter last year, the business posted $0.29 EPS. On average, sell-side analysts forecast that Fastenal Company will post 1.26 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Fastenal Increases Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, August 25th. Shareholders of record on Tuesday, July 28th will be issued a $0.26 dividend. This is a boost from Fastenal’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.24. This represents a $1.04 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 2.0%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Tuesday, July 28th. Fastenal’s dividend payout ratio is presently 88.14%.

Fastenal Company 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.