E. Ohman J or Asset Management AB Decreases Position in Fastenal (NASDAQ:FAST)

E. Ohman J or Asset Management AB cut its stake in shares of Fastenal (NASDAQ:FAST) by 6.6% during the third quarter, HoldingsChannel reports. The firm owned 22,500 shares of the company’s stock after selling 1,600 shares during the quarter. E. Ohman J or Asset Management AB’s holdings in Fastenal were worth $1,607,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also added to or reduced their stakes in the company. MCF Advisors LLC grew its stake in shares of Fastenal by 2,172.2% during the first quarter. MCF Advisors LLC now owns 409 shares of the company’s stock valued at $32,000 after buying an additional 391 shares during the last quarter. Central Valley Advisors LLC bought a new position in shares of Fastenal during the second quarter valued at approximately $28,000. Moisand Fitzgerald Tamayo LLC grew its stake in shares of Fastenal by 1,019.0% during the third quarter. Moisand Fitzgerald Tamayo LLC now owns 470 shares of the company’s stock valued at $34,000 after buying an additional 428 shares during the last quarter. LRI Investments LLC bought a new position in shares of Fastenal during the first quarter valued at approximately $39,000. Finally, Triad Wealth Partners LLC bought a new position in shares of Fastenal during the second quarter valued at approximately $32,000. 81.38% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

FAST has been the topic of a number of analyst reports. Jefferies Financial Group cut their target price on Fastenal from $74.00 to $65.00 and set a “hold” rating on the stock in a research note on Thursday, July 11th. Stephens increased their price objective on Fastenal from $56.00 to $75.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a research note on Monday, October 14th. Bank of America began coverage on Fastenal in a research note on Monday, October 7th. They issued a “buy” rating and a $85.00 price objective on the stock. Robert W. Baird increased their price objective on Fastenal from $67.00 to $80.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research note on Monday, October 14th. Finally, Stifel Nicolaus reissued a “buy” rating and issued a $86.00 price objective (up previously from $80.00) on shares of Fastenal in a research note on Monday, October 14th. Seven equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and two have given a buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, the company presently has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $73.33.

Fastenal Stock Up 0.3 %

Fastenal stock opened at $75.85 on Friday. The business has a fifty day moving average of $70.74 and a two-hundred day moving average of $68.04. The company has a quick ratio of 2.29, a current ratio of 4.39 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.04. The firm has a market cap of $43.43 billion, a P/E ratio of 37.74, a P/E/G ratio of 4.13 and a beta of 1.01. Fastenal has a twelve month low of $57.01 and a twelve month high of $79.04.

Fastenal (NASDAQ:FAST) last posted its earnings results on Friday, October 11th. The company reported $0.52 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.51 by $0.01. The company had revenue of $1.91 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $1.90 billion. Fastenal had a return on equity of 33.54% and a net margin of 15.54%. Fastenal’s revenue was up 3.5% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the prior year, the business earned $0.52 earnings per share. On average, analysts forecast that Fastenal will post 2.04 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Fastenal Announces Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed 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 of this dividend is Friday, October 25th. This represents a $1.56 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 2.06%. Fastenal’s dividend payout ratio is presently 77.61%.

Insider Activity

In other news, VP John Lewis Soderberg sold 488 shares of the stock in a transaction on Monday, October 14th. The stock was sold at an average price of $76.32, for a total transaction of $37,244.16. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this link. In related news, CEO Daniel L. Florness sold 45,744 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Wednesday, August 21st. The stock was sold at an average price of $68.14, for a total value of $3,116,996.16. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief executive officer now owns 286,018 shares in the company, valued at $19,489,266.52. This trade represents a 0.00 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available at this link. Also, VP John Lewis Soderberg sold 488 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Monday, October 14th. The stock was sold at an average price of $76.32, for a total value of $37,244.16. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last quarter, insiders sold 179,373 shares of company stock worth $13,029,308. Insiders own 0.41% of the company’s stock.

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.