Fastenal (NASDAQ:FAST) Shares Sold by Romano Brothers AND Company

Romano Brothers AND Company reduced its holdings in Fastenal (NASDAQ:FAST) by 0.9% in the 4th quarter, HoldingsChannel.com reports. The firm owned 16,027 shares of the company’s stock after selling 150 shares during the quarter. Romano Brothers AND Company’s holdings in Fastenal were worth $1,153,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other large investors have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Ashton Thomas Securities LLC acquired a new position in shares of Fastenal during the 3rd quarter valued at about $25,000. Knuff & Co LLC acquired a new position in Fastenal during the third quarter worth approximately $27,000. Moisand Fitzgerald Tamayo LLC raised its stake in Fastenal by 1,019.0% during the third quarter. Moisand Fitzgerald Tamayo LLC now owns 470 shares of the company’s stock worth $34,000 after purchasing an additional 428 shares during the period. First Personal Financial Services acquired a new position in shares of Fastenal in the 3rd quarter valued at $36,000. Finally, CVA Family Office LLC grew its stake in shares of Fastenal by 51.0% during the 3rd quarter. CVA Family Office LLC now owns 533 shares of the company’s stock valued at $38,000 after buying an additional 180 shares during the period. 81.38% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Insider Activity

In other Fastenal news, Director Rita J. Heise sold 10,888 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, October 30th. The stock was sold at an average price of $77.67, for a total transaction of $845,670.96. Following the sale, the director now owns 20,000 shares in the company, valued at $1,553,400. This represents a 35.25 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available through this link. Also, CEO Daniel L. Florness sold 31,818 shares of Fastenal stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, November 11th. The stock was sold at an average price of $84.50, for a total value of $2,688,621.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief executive officer now owns 286,018 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $24,168,521. The trade was a 10.01 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last three months, insiders sold 74,660 shares of company stock worth $6,211,126. 0.41% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several brokerages recently weighed in on FAST. Jefferies Financial Group increased their target price on Fastenal from $74.00 to $85.00 and gave the stock a “hold” rating in a research report on Friday, December 6th. 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 boosted their target price on Fastenal from $67.00 to $80.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a report on Monday, October 14th. Stephens raised their price target on shares of Fastenal from $56.00 to $75.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a report on Monday, October 14th. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. boosted their price objective 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. Two 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. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $77.27.

Fastenal Price Performance

FAST opened at $76.08 on Friday. Fastenal has a twelve month low of $61.36 and a twelve month high of $84.88. The firm has a market cap of $43.59 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 37.85, a PEG ratio of 3.94 and a beta of 1.02. The company has a current ratio of 4.40, a quick ratio of 2.29 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.03. The company has a fifty day simple moving average of $77.92 and a 200 day simple moving average of $73.00.

Fastenal (NASDAQ:FAST) last announced 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 net margin of 15.44% and a return on equity of 33.30%. The business had revenue of $1.82 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $1,842,560.16 billion. During the same quarter in the prior year, the business earned $0.46 earnings per share. The firm’s revenue was up 3.7% on a year-over-year basis. Equities research analysts expect that Fastenal will post 2.03 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Fastenal Increases Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, February 28th. Shareholders of record on Friday, January 31st will be given a $0.43 dividend. This represents a $1.72 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 2.26%. This is a positive change from Fastenal’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.39. Fastenal’s dividend payout ratio is presently 77.61%.

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.