Fastenal (NASDAQ:FAST) Shares Sold by Banque Cantonale Vaudoise

Banque Cantonale Vaudoise trimmed its position in shares of Fastenal (NASDAQ:FAST) by 33.8% in the third quarter, HoldingsChannel reports. The firm owned 28,018 shares of the company’s stock after selling 14,282 shares during the period. Banque Cantonale Vaudoise’s holdings in Fastenal were worth $2,001,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission.

Other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently bought and sold shares of the company. Aaron Wealth Advisors LLC acquired a new position in Fastenal during the 3rd quarter valued at about $310,000. Comgest Global Investors S.A.S. boosted its stake in Fastenal by 73.0% during the 3rd quarter. Comgest Global Investors S.A.S. now owns 87,081 shares of the company’s stock valued at $6,219,000 after purchasing an additional 36,742 shares during the period. Cetera Investment Advisers lifted its stake in shares of Fastenal by 499.7% in the 1st quarter. Cetera Investment Advisers now owns 132,046 shares of the company’s stock worth $10,186,000 after acquiring an additional 110,027 shares during the period. Wealth Enhancement Advisory Services LLC lifted its stake in shares of Fastenal by 5.7% in the 2nd quarter. Wealth Enhancement Advisory Services LLC now owns 210,998 shares of the company’s stock worth $13,259,000 after acquiring an additional 11,436 shares during the period. Finally, Peak Financial Advisors LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Fastenal in the 2nd quarter worth approximately $2,643,000. 81.38% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Fastenal Stock Up 0.3 %

NASDAQ FAST opened at $81.82 on Thursday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.03, a current ratio of 4.40 and a quick ratio of 2.29. The company’s 50 day simple moving average is $75.74 and its 200 day simple moving average is $69.51. Fastenal has a 12 month low of $59.47 and a 12 month high of $84.88. The company has a market capitalization of $46.87 billion, a P/E ratio of 40.71, a PEG ratio of 4.80 and a beta of 0.99.

Fastenal (NASDAQ:FAST) last released its quarterly earnings results on Friday, October 11th. The company reported $0.52 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.51 by $0.01. Fastenal had a net margin of 15.44% and a return on equity of 33.30%. The business had revenue of $1.91 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $1.90 billion. During the same quarter in the previous year, the business earned $0.52 earnings per share. The firm’s revenue was up 3.5% compared to the same quarter last year. Equities research analysts expect that Fastenal will post 2.03 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Fastenal Dividend Announcement

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, November 22nd. Stockholders of record on Friday, October 25th will be issued a dividend of $0.39 per share. The ex-dividend date is Friday, October 25th. This represents a $1.56 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.91%. Fastenal’s dividend payout ratio is currently 77.61%.

Insider Activity

In other Fastenal news, insider William Joseph Drazkowski sold 16,362 shares of Fastenal stock in a transaction on Wednesday, October 16th. The shares were sold at an average price of $77.65, for a total transaction of $1,270,509.30. Following the completion of the sale, the insider now owns 5,997 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $465,667.05. This trade represents a 73.18 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available at this hyperlink. Also, CAO Sheryl Ann Lisowski sold 13,567 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Monday, October 14th. The stock was sold at an average price of $76.19, for a total transaction of $1,033,669.73. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief accounting officer now directly owns 5,096 shares in the company, valued at $388,264.24. This trade represents a 72.69 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold 208,289 shares of company stock worth $16,123,438 over the last 90 days. 0.41% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

Analyst Ratings Changes

FAST has been the subject of a number of research analyst reports. Stephens upped their price target on shares of Fastenal from $56.00 to $75.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a research note on Monday, October 14th. UBS Group initiated coverage on shares of Fastenal in a research note on Wednesday, November 13th. They issued a “neutral” rating and a $88.00 price target for the company. Morgan Stanley upped their price target on shares of Fastenal from $72.00 to $76.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a research note on Monday, October 14th. Stifel Nicolaus reaffirmed a “buy” rating and issued a $86.00 price target (up from $80.00) on shares of Fastenal in a research note on Monday, October 14th. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. upped their price target on shares of Fastenal from $57.00 to $63.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research note on Thursday, October 10th. Eight investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and two have issued a buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, the company currently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $74.80.

Fastenal Company 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.