Fastenal (NASDAQ:FAST) Releases Quarterly Earnings Results, Misses Estimates By $0.02 EPS

Fastenal (NASDAQ:FAST) announced its earnings results on Friday. The company reported $0.46 earnings per share for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $0.48 by ($0.02), Zacks reports. Fastenal had a net margin of 15.44% and a return on equity of 33.30%. During the same quarter last year, the company earned $0.46 earnings per share.

Fastenal Trading Up 0.7 %

Shares of Fastenal stock opened at $74.77 on Friday. The stock has a market cap of $42.83 billion, a PE ratio of 37.20, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 3.94 and a beta of 1.02. The firm has a fifty day moving average price of $78.23 and a 200 day moving average price of $72.82. Fastenal has a 1 year low of $61.36 and a 1 year high of $84.88. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.03, a current ratio of 4.40 and a quick ratio of 2.29.

Fastenal Increases Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, February 28th. Stockholders of record on Friday, January 31st will be paid a $0.43 dividend. This represents a $1.72 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 2.30%. This is a positive change from Fastenal’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.39. Fastenal’s dividend payout ratio is presently 77.61%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

FAST has been the subject of a number of recent analyst reports. UBS Group initiated coverage on Fastenal in a research report on Wednesday, November 13th. They issued a “neutral” rating and a $88.00 price objective for the company. Robert W. Baird raised their price target on Fastenal from $67.00 to $80.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a report on Monday, October 14th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. upped their price objective on shares of Fastenal from $57.00 to $63.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a report on Thursday, October 10th. HSBC cut shares of Fastenal from a “hold” rating to a “reduce” rating and set a $70.00 target price for the company. in a research note on Wednesday, December 11th. Finally, Morgan Stanley upped their price target on shares of Fastenal from $72.00 to $76.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a research note on Monday, October 14th. Two research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, eight have issued a hold rating and one has given a buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, Fastenal has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $77.27.

Insider Buying and Selling at Fastenal

In related news, Director Daniel L. Johnson sold 8,474 shares of Fastenal stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, November 13th. The stock was sold at an average price of $83.36, for a total transaction of $706,392.64. Following the completion of the transaction, the director now directly owns 10,595 shares in the company, valued at approximately $883,199.20. This trade represents a 44.44 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. Also, Director Rita J. Heise sold 10,888 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, October 30th. The stock was sold at an average price of $77.67, for a total value of $845,670.96. Following the completion of the sale, the director now owns 20,000 shares in the company, valued at approximately $1,553,400. This represents a 35.25 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last three months, insiders have sold 74,660 shares of company stock valued at $6,211,126. 0.41% of the stock is owned by insiders.

About Fastenal

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.