OMERS ADMINISTRATION Corp Buys Shares of 68,200 Fastenal Company $FAST

OMERS ADMINISTRATION Corp purchased a new stake in shares of Fastenal Company (NASDAQ:FAST) during the second quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor purchased 68,200 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $3,276,000.

Other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently made changes to their positions in the company. Elyxium Wealth LLC purchased a new stake in Fastenal in the 4th quarter worth about $25,000. Palladiem LLC purchased a new stake in Fastenal during the fourth quarter valued at about $25,000. Evergreen Advisors LLC purchased a new stake in Fastenal during the first quarter valued at about $26,000. Mowery & Schoenfeld Wealth Management LLC bought a new position in Fastenal during the second quarter worth about $26,000. Finally, MV Capital Management Inc. bought a new position in Fastenal during the fourth quarter worth about $29,000. Institutional investors own 81.38% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

FAST has been the topic of several research reports. Barclays lowered their price target on shares of Fastenal from $47.00 to $46.00 and set an “equal weight” rating on the stock in a research report on Thursday, July 16th. Rothschild & Co Redburn set a $55.00 price objective on shares of Fastenal and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Monday, July 13th. Weiss Ratings lowered shares of Fastenal from a “buy (b)” rating to a “buy (b-)” rating in a research note on Tuesday, July 21st. Jefferies Financial Group reissued a “buy” rating on shares of Fastenal in a report on Thursday, June 4th. Finally, Wolfe Research reaffirmed an “underperform” rating and issued a $47.00 price target on shares of Fastenal in a report on Thursday, July 9th. Five analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, five have issued a Hold rating and two have given a Sell rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, Fastenal currently has an average rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $49.17.

Fastenal Trading Down 1.9%

Shares of Fastenal stock opened at $50.31 on Wednesday. Fastenal Company has a 12-month low of $38.97 and a 12-month high of $52.92. The company has a market cap of $57.73 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 42.64, a PEG ratio of 3.20 and a beta of 0.72. The company has a current ratio of 4.18, a quick ratio of 2.21 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.01. The company’s 50-day moving average price is $48.15 and its 200-day moving average price is $46.43.

Fastenal (NASDAQ:FAST) last posted its earnings results on Tuesday, July 14th. The company reported $0.33 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, hitting the consensus estimate of $0.33. Fastenal had a net margin of 15.45% and a return on equity of 34.03%. The business had revenue of $2.39 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $2.34 billion. During the same period in the prior year, the company posted $0.29 EPS. The business’s revenue for the quarter was up 14.7% compared to the same quarter last year. On average, equities analysts expect 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 was paid on Tuesday, August 25th. Investors of record on Tuesday, July 28th were given a $0.26 dividend. This represents a $1.04 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 2.1%. This is a boost from Fastenal’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.24. The ex-dividend date was Tuesday, July 28th. Fastenal’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 88.14%.

Insider Buying and Selling at Fastenal

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

Fastenal 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.