ORG Partners LLC Boosts Stake in Fastenal (NASDAQ:FAST)

ORG Partners LLC boosted its stake in Fastenal (NASDAQ:FAST) by 3,788.3% during the second quarter, Holdings Channel.com reports. The institutional investor owned 7,310 shares of the company’s stock after acquiring an additional 7,122 shares during the period. ORG Partners LLC’s holdings in Fastenal were worth $454,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other institutional investors also recently bought and sold shares of the company. Central Valley Advisors LLC acquired a new position in Fastenal in the 2nd quarter valued at $28,000. MCF Advisors LLC raised its holdings in Fastenal by 2,172.2% in the 1st quarter. MCF Advisors LLC now owns 409 shares of the company’s stock valued at $32,000 after acquiring an additional 391 shares during the last quarter. Harel Insurance Investments & Financial Services Ltd. acquired a new position in Fastenal in the 4th quarter valued at $35,000. LRI Investments LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Fastenal during the 1st quarter worth $39,000. Finally, Criterion Capital Advisors LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Fastenal during the 4th quarter worth $43,000. 81.38% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Fastenal Stock Up 0.8 %

NASDAQ FAST traded up $0.54 during trading hours on Thursday, hitting $66.81. The company had a trading volume of 161,234 shares, compared to its average volume of 3,609,570. Fastenal has a fifty-two week low of $53.83 and a fifty-two week high of $79.04. The company has a market capitalization of $38.25 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 32.97, a P/E/G ratio of 3.65 and a beta of 1.01. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.04, a current ratio of 4.39 and a quick ratio of 2.29. The firm’s 50 day moving average is $65.67 and its 200 day moving average is $68.95.

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

Fastenal Announces Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, August 23rd. Shareholders of record on Friday, July 26th will be given a $0.39 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, July 26th. This represents a $1.56 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 2.33%. Fastenal’s payout ratio is currently 77.61%.

Insider Buying and Selling at Fastenal

In other Fastenal news, EVP James C. Jansen sold 11,428 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, May 29th. The shares were sold at an average price of $64.07, for a total value of $732,191.96. Following the completion of the transaction, the executive vice president now directly owns 26,176 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $1,677,096.32. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this link. In other Fastenal news, EVP James C. Jansen sold 11,428 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, May 29th. The shares were sold at an average price of $64.07, for a total value of $732,191.96. Following the completion of the transaction, the executive vice president now directly owns 26,176 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $1,677,096.32. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this link. Also, Director Hsenghung Sam Hsu purchased 500 shares of Fastenal stock in a transaction dated Monday, June 10th. The shares were bought at an average cost of $63.28 per share, for a total transaction of $31,640.00. Following the transaction, the director now directly owns 3,500 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $221,480. The disclosure for this purchase can be found here. 0.41% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

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

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.