Sawgrass Asset Management LLC Has $6.17 Million Stake in Fastenal (NASDAQ:FAST)

Sawgrass Asset Management LLC lowered its stake in shares of Fastenal (NASDAQ:FAST) by 3.2% in the 4th quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 95,186 shares of the company’s stock after selling 3,158 shares during the quarter. Sawgrass Asset Management LLC’s holdings in Fastenal were worth $6,165,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other large investors have also bought and sold shares of FAST. Hartford Financial Management Inc. boosted its holdings in Fastenal by 46.9% during the 4th quarter. Hartford Financial Management Inc. now owns 479 shares of the company’s stock worth $31,000 after acquiring an additional 153 shares during the last quarter. Harel Insurance Investments & Financial Services Ltd. purchased a new position in Fastenal during the 4th quarter worth $35,000. Criterion Capital Advisors LLC purchased a new position in Fastenal during the 4th quarter worth $43,000. First Horizon Advisors Inc. boosted its holdings in shares of Fastenal by 283.2% in the 4th quarter. First Horizon Advisors Inc. now owns 755 shares of the company’s stock worth $49,000 after buying an additional 558 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Pacific Center for Financial Services purchased a new position in shares of Fastenal in the 3rd quarter worth about $66,000. 81.38% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Insider Activity at Fastenal

In related news, Director Daniel L. Johnson acquired 3,350 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, April 17th. The stock was bought at an average cost of $68.38 per share, for a total transaction of $229,073.00. Following the purchase, the director now owns 10,595 shares in the company, valued at approximately $724,486.10. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this link. In other news, insider Jeffery Michael Watts sold 19,420 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, February 20th. The stock was sold at an average price of $70.25, for a total transaction of $1,364,255.00. Following the sale, the insider now directly owns 5,940 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $417,285. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. Also, Director Daniel L. Johnson purchased 3,350 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, April 17th. The shares were bought at an average price of $68.38 per share, for a total transaction of $229,073.00. Following the acquisition, the director now directly owns 10,595 shares in the company, valued at approximately $724,486.10. The disclosure for this purchase can be found here. 0.41% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of equities analysts recently weighed in on the stock. Stifel Nicolaus boosted their price target on shares of Fastenal from $75.00 to $85.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Monday, March 18th. Loop Capital dropped their price objective on shares of Fastenal from $71.00 to $66.00 and set a “hold” rating on the stock in a report on Monday, April 15th. HSBC upped their price objective on shares of Fastenal from $59.00 to $64.00 and gave the company a “hold” rating in a report on Monday, April 15th. Finally, Robert W. Baird dropped their price objective on shares of Fastenal from $71.00 to $69.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a report on Tuesday. Five research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and one has assigned a buy rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company has an average rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $67.33.

Fastenal Stock Up 0.6 %

Shares of FAST traded up $0.37 during trading hours on Wednesday, hitting $66.78. The company had a trading volume of 3,945,343 shares, compared to its average volume of 3,962,624. The firm has a fifty day moving average price of $72.87 and a 200-day moving average price of $67.29. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.06, a quick ratio of 2.49 and a current ratio of 4.83. The stock has a market capitalization of $38.23 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 33.06, a P/E/G ratio of 3.58 and a beta of 1.07. Fastenal has a 52-week low of $52.86 and a 52-week high of $79.04.

Fastenal (NASDAQ:FAST) last released its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, April 11th. The company reported $0.52 EPS for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $0.53 by ($0.01). Fastenal had a net margin of 15.68% and a return on equity of 33.98%. The business had revenue of $1.90 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $1.91 billion. During the same period in the previous year, the company earned $0.52 EPS. Fastenal’s revenue for the quarter was up 1.9% compared to the same quarter last year. On average, equities research analysts forecast that Fastenal will post 2.12 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Fastenal Dividend Announcement

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, May 23rd. Investors of record on Thursday, April 25th will be paid a dividend of $0.39 per share. The ex-dividend date is Wednesday, April 24th. This represents a $1.56 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 2.34%. Fastenal’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 77.23%.

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.