Verdence Capital Advisors LLC Sells 1,482 Shares of Fastenal (NASDAQ:FAST)

Verdence Capital Advisors LLC reduced its stake in shares of Fastenal (NASDAQ:FAST) by 16.5% in the second quarter, HoldingsChannel.com reports. The firm owned 7,486 shares of the company’s stock after selling 1,482 shares during the period. Verdence Capital Advisors LLC’s holdings in Fastenal were worth $470,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently modified their holdings of FAST. Central Valley Advisors LLC purchased a new stake in Fastenal in the 2nd quarter valued at $28,000. MCF Advisors LLC boosted its holdings in Fastenal by 2,172.2% during the first quarter. MCF Advisors LLC now owns 409 shares of the company’s stock worth $32,000 after purchasing an additional 391 shares during the last quarter. Triad Wealth Partners LLC purchased a new stake in Fastenal in the 2nd quarter valued at about $32,000. OFI Invest Asset Management purchased a new position in shares of Fastenal in the 2nd quarter worth approximately $35,000. Finally, LRI Investments LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Fastenal during the first quarter valued at approximately $39,000. 81.38% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of research analysts have issued reports on FAST shares. Stephens restated an “equal weight” rating and issued a $56.00 price objective on shares of Fastenal in a research note on Monday, July 15th. Stifel Nicolaus restated a “buy” rating and set a $80.00 price objective (down previously from $85.00) on shares of Fastenal in a report on Monday, July 15th. Jefferies Financial Group dropped their target price on shares of Fastenal from $74.00 to $65.00 and set a “hold” rating on the stock in a research note on Thursday, July 11th. Finally, Robert W. Baird reduced their target price on shares of Fastenal from $71.00 to $69.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a research report on Tuesday, May 7th. Six investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and one has assigned a buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, Fastenal has an average rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $66.67.

Fastenal Stock Performance

NASDAQ FAST traded down $0.17 during trading on Monday, hitting $67.93. 1,327,690 shares of the company’s stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 3,542,159. The stock has a market capitalization of $38.89 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 33.80, a PEG ratio of 3.65 and a beta of 1.01. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.04, a quick ratio of 2.29 and a current ratio of 4.39. The business has a 50 day moving average of $66.24 and a 200-day moving average of $68.84. Fastenal has a 12-month low of $53.83 and a 12-month high of $79.04.

Fastenal (NASDAQ:FAST) last released its quarterly earnings data on Friday, July 12th. The company reported $0.51 EPS for the quarter, hitting the consensus estimate of $0.51. Fastenal had a net margin of 15.54% and a return on equity of 33.54%. The company had revenue of $1.92 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $1.91 billion. During the same period last year, the firm earned $0.52 EPS. Fastenal’s revenue for the quarter was up 1.8% on a year-over-year basis. As a group, equities research analysts anticipate that Fastenal will post 2.05 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Fastenal Dividend Announcement

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, August 23rd. Investors of record on Friday, July 26th were issued a dividend of $0.39 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, July 26th. This represents a $1.56 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 2.30%. Fastenal’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 77.61%.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, Director Hsenghung Sam Hsu purchased 500 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Monday, June 10th. The shares were purchased at an average cost of $63.28 per share, for a total transaction of $31,640.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the director now directly owns 3,500 shares in the company, valued at approximately $221,480. The acquisition was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this link. In related news, CEO Daniel L. Florness sold 45,744 shares of Fastenal stock in a transaction on Wednesday, August 21st. The stock was sold at an average price of $68.14, for a total transaction of $3,116,996.16. Following the completion of the sale, the chief executive officer now owns 286,018 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $19,489,266.52. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this link. Also, Director Hsenghung Sam Hsu bought 500 shares of Fastenal stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, June 10th. The shares were acquired at an average price of $63.28 per share, with a total value of $31,640.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the director now owns 3,500 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $221,480. The disclosure for this purchase can be found here. 0.41% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

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.