Norris Perne & French LLP MI Sells 83,755 Shares of Fastenal (NASDAQ:FAST)

Norris Perne & French LLP MI lessened its stake in shares of Fastenal (NASDAQ:FAST) by 28.3% in the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the SEC. The fund owned 212,031 shares of the company’s stock after selling 83,755 shares during the quarter. Norris Perne & French LLP MI’s holdings in Fastenal were worth $15,247,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other institutional investors and hedge funds have also bought and sold shares of the stock. Ashton Thomas Securities LLC acquired a new stake in Fastenal during the third quarter worth approximately $25,000. Knuff & Co LLC acquired a new stake in Fastenal during the 3rd quarter worth approximately $27,000. Moisand Fitzgerald Tamayo LLC boosted its stake in Fastenal by 1,019.0% in the 3rd quarter. Moisand Fitzgerald Tamayo LLC now owns 470 shares of the company’s stock valued at $34,000 after purchasing an additional 428 shares during the period. First Personal Financial Services acquired a new position in Fastenal in the 3rd quarter valued at $36,000. Finally, CVA Family Office LLC increased its position in Fastenal by 51.0% during the 3rd quarter. CVA Family Office LLC now owns 533 shares of the company’s stock worth $38,000 after buying an additional 180 shares during the period. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 81.38% of the company’s stock.

Fastenal Stock Performance

NASDAQ:FAST opened at $74.98 on Friday. The stock’s 50-day simple moving average is $76.78 and its 200 day simple moving average is $73.68. Fastenal has a twelve month low of $61.36 and a twelve month high of $84.88. The company has a quick ratio of 2.28, a current ratio of 4.67 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.03. The firm has a market capitalization of $42.96 billion, a PE ratio of 37.30, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 3.52 and a beta of 1.02.

Fastenal (NASDAQ:FAST) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Friday, January 17th. The company reported $0.46 earnings per share for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.48 by ($0.02). Fastenal had a return on equity of 32.55% and a net margin of 15.25%. The firm had revenue of $1.82 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $1.84 billion. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm earned $0.46 EPS. The company’s revenue was up 3.7% on a year-over-year basis. On average, analysts anticipate that Fastenal will post 2.15 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Fastenal Increases Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, February 28th. Stockholders of record on Friday, January 31st will be issued a dividend of $0.43 per share. This represents a $1.72 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 2.29%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, January 31st. This is a positive change from Fastenal’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.39. Fastenal’s payout ratio is 77.61%.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, Director Daniel L. Johnson sold 8,474 shares of Fastenal stock in a transaction 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 completion of the transaction, the director now owns 10,595 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $883,199.20. This trade represents a 44.44 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at the SEC website. Also, VP Charles S. Miller sold 23,480 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated 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. Insiders have sold a total of 63,772 shares of company stock valued at $5,365,455 over the last 90 days. 0.41% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several equities analysts recently commented on FAST shares. 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 on the stock. Stifel Nicolaus decreased their target price on shares of Fastenal from $86.00 to $82.00 and set a “hold” rating on the stock in a research report on Tuesday, January 21st. Stephens lifted their price target on shares of Fastenal from $56.00 to $75.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a research report on Monday, October 14th. Wolfe Research increased their price target on Fastenal from $74.00 to $76.00 and gave the stock an “underweight” rating in a research report on Thursday, January 16th. Finally, Robert W. Baird lifted their price objective on Fastenal from $67.00 to $80.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a report on Monday, October 14th. Two analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, eight have given a hold rating and one has assigned a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, Fastenal presently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $76.91.

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.