Ballentine Partners LLC Grows Holdings in Fastenal (NASDAQ:FAST)

Ballentine Partners LLC raised its position in shares of Fastenal (NASDAQ:FAST) by 2.6% during the 4th quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor owned 10,822 shares of the company’s stock after purchasing an additional 271 shares during the quarter. Ballentine Partners LLC’s holdings in Fastenal were worth $778,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other hedge funds have also modified their holdings of the company. Ashton Thomas Securities LLC purchased a new position in shares of Fastenal during the 3rd quarter valued at $25,000. Knuff & Co LLC bought a new position in shares of Fastenal in the third quarter worth about $27,000. Moisand Fitzgerald Tamayo LLC boosted its stake in shares of Fastenal by 1,019.0% in the third quarter. Moisand Fitzgerald Tamayo LLC now owns 470 shares of the company’s stock worth $34,000 after acquiring an additional 428 shares during the period. First Personal Financial Services bought a new stake in Fastenal during the 3rd quarter valued at approximately $36,000. Finally, CVA Family Office LLC lifted its holdings in Fastenal by 51.0% in the 3rd quarter. CVA Family Office LLC now owns 533 shares of the company’s stock worth $38,000 after purchasing an additional 180 shares in the last quarter. 81.38% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Fastenal Price Performance

NASDAQ:FAST opened at $75.60 on Thursday. The firm has a market capitalization of $43.31 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 37.61, a PEG ratio of 4.22 and a beta of 1.02. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.03, a current ratio of 4.67 and a quick ratio of 2.28. The business has a 50 day simple moving average of $77.60 and a 200-day simple moving average of $73.26. Fastenal has a 1 year low of $61.36 and a 1 year high of $84.88.

Fastenal (NASDAQ:FAST) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Friday, January 17th. The company reported $0.46 EPS for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $0.48 by ($0.02). Fastenal had a return on equity of 32.55% and a net margin of 15.25%. The firm had revenue of $1.82 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $1,842,560.16 billion. During the same period in the previous year, the firm earned $0.46 earnings per share. The firm’s quarterly revenue was up 3.7% compared to the same quarter last year. Equities analysts forecast that Fastenal will post 2.16 EPS for the current year.

Fastenal Increases Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, February 28th. Investors of record on Friday, January 31st will be given a $0.43 dividend. This is a positive change from Fastenal’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.39. This represents a $1.72 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 2.28%. The ex-dividend date is Friday, January 31st. Fastenal’s dividend payout ratio is 77.61%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several equities research analysts have recently issued reports on the stock. Bank of America initiated coverage on shares of Fastenal in a research report on Monday, October 7th. They set a “buy” rating and a $85.00 price objective on the stock. HSBC downgraded shares of Fastenal from a “hold” rating to a “reduce” rating and set a $70.00 price target on the stock. in a report on Wednesday, December 11th. UBS Group began coverage on shares of Fastenal in a report on Wednesday, November 13th. They set a “neutral” rating and a $88.00 price objective for the company. Robert W. Baird lifted their target price on Fastenal from $67.00 to $80.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a report on Monday, October 14th. Finally, Wolfe Research increased their price target on Fastenal from $74.00 to $76.00 and gave the company an “underweight” rating in a research note on Thursday, January 16th. Two equities research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, eight have given a hold rating and one has given a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $76.91.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other news, Director Daniel L. Johnson sold 8,474 shares of Fastenal stock in a transaction 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 sale, 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 transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this link. Also, Director Rita J. Heise sold 10,888 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, October 30th. The stock was sold at an average price of $77.67, for a total transaction of $845,670.96. Following the completion of the transaction, the director now owns 20,000 shares in the company, valued at approximately $1,553,400. The trade was a 35.25 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold a total of 74,660 shares of company stock valued at $6,211,126 over the last 90 days. Insiders own 0.41% of the company’s stock.

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.