Empirical Finance LLC Reduces Holdings in Fastenal (NASDAQ:FAST)

Empirical Finance LLC cut its stake in Fastenal (NASDAQ:FAST) by 1.3% in the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund owned 19,518 shares of the company’s stock after selling 257 shares during the period. Empirical Finance LLC’s holdings in Fastenal were worth $1,404,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other large investors also recently bought and sold shares of FAST. Brookstone Capital Management boosted its position in shares of Fastenal by 10.1% in the 3rd quarter. Brookstone Capital Management now owns 4,986 shares of the company’s stock valued at $356,000 after purchasing an additional 456 shares during the period. Wedmont Private Capital lifted its stake in Fastenal by 20.6% in the third quarter. Wedmont Private Capital now owns 4,614 shares of the company’s stock valued at $323,000 after buying an additional 788 shares during the last quarter. Livforsakringsbolaget Skandia Omsesidigt boosted its holdings in shares of Fastenal by 269.6% in the third quarter. Livforsakringsbolaget Skandia Omsesidigt now owns 4,007 shares of the company’s stock valued at $286,000 after acquiring an additional 2,923 shares during the period. Gateway Investment Advisers LLC grew its position in shares of Fastenal by 7.8% during the third quarter. Gateway Investment Advisers LLC now owns 16,858 shares of the company’s stock worth $1,204,000 after acquiring an additional 1,213 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Annex Advisory Services LLC increased its holdings in shares of Fastenal by 40.9% in the 3rd quarter. Annex Advisory Services LLC now owns 5,265 shares of the company’s stock valued at $376,000 after acquiring an additional 1,529 shares during the period. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 81.38% of the company’s stock.

Fastenal Price Performance

Shares of NASDAQ FAST opened at $73.84 on Monday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.03, a quick ratio of 2.28 and a current ratio of 4.67. Fastenal has a one year low of $61.36 and a one year high of $84.88. The firm has a market capitalization of $42.30 billion, a P/E ratio of 36.74, a PEG ratio of 3.55 and a beta of 1.02. The company’s fifty day moving average is $75.44 and its two-hundred day moving average is $73.94.

Fastenal (NASDAQ:FAST) last issued its earnings results on Friday, January 17th. The company reported $0.46 earnings per share 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 company had revenue of $1.82 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $1.84 billion. During the same quarter in the previous year, the company posted $0.46 earnings per share. The company’s quarterly revenue was up 3.7% compared to the same quarter last year. Analysts forecast that Fastenal will post 2.15 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Fastenal Increases Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, February 28th. Stockholders of record on Friday, January 31st will be given a $0.43 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Friday, January 31st. This represents a $1.72 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 2.33%. This is a boost from Fastenal’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.39. Fastenal’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 85.57%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of analysts recently weighed in on the stock. Robert W. Baird increased their price target on shares of Fastenal from $67.00 to $80.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research note on Monday, October 14th. UBS Group started coverage on Fastenal in a report on Wednesday, November 13th. They set a “neutral” rating and a $88.00 price target on the stock. Hsbc Global Res downgraded Fastenal from a “hold” rating to a “moderate sell” rating in a research note on Wednesday, December 11th. Wolfe Research lifted their target price on Fastenal from $74.00 to $76.00 and gave the company an “underweight” rating in a research note on Thursday, January 16th. Finally, Morgan Stanley upped their price target on Fastenal from $72.00 to $76.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a research note on Monday, October 14th. Two research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, eight have issued a hold rating and one has issued a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $76.91.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In related news, Director Daniel L. Johnson sold 8,474 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, November 13th. The shares were sold at an average price of $83.36, for a total transaction of $706,392.64. Following the transaction, the director now owns 10,595 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $883,199.20. This represents a 44.44 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available at the SEC website. Also, VP Charles S. Miller sold 23,480 shares of Fastenal stock in a transaction on Wednesday, November 13th. The shares were sold at an average price of $83.92, for a total value of $1,970,441.60. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. 0.41% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

About Fastenal

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.