Symphony Financial Ltd. Co. Cuts Holdings in Fastenal (NASDAQ:FAST)

Symphony Financial Ltd. Co. reduced its position in shares of Fastenal (NASDAQ:FAST) by 69.4% during the 4th quarter, HoldingsChannel reports. The fund owned 4,127 shares of the company’s stock after selling 9,343 shares during the period. Symphony Financial Ltd. Co.’s holdings in Fastenal were worth $314,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other institutional investors have also recently modified their holdings of the business. Aaron Wealth Advisors LLC acquired a new position in Fastenal in the 3rd quarter worth about $310,000. Comgest Global Investors S.A.S. increased its position in shares of Fastenal by 73.0% in the third quarter. Comgest Global Investors S.A.S. now owns 87,081 shares of the company’s stock valued at $6,219,000 after buying an additional 36,742 shares in the last quarter. PNC Financial Services Group Inc. increased its position in shares of Fastenal by 1.8% in the third quarter. PNC Financial Services Group Inc. now owns 369,267 shares of the company’s stock valued at $26,373,000 after buying an additional 6,488 shares in the last quarter. Matrix Trust Co acquired a new position in shares of Fastenal during the 4th quarter worth approximately $1,756,000. Finally, Franklin Resources Inc. lifted its position in shares of Fastenal by 3.8% during the 3rd quarter. Franklin Resources Inc. now owns 4,572,999 shares of the company’s stock valued at $350,703,000 after buying an additional 165,423 shares in the last quarter. 81.38% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Insider Activity

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 stock was sold at an average price of $83.36, for a total value of $706,392.64. Following the transaction, the director now directly owns 10,595 shares in the company, valued at approximately $883,199.20. This represents a 44.44 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this link. Also, VP Charles S. Miller sold 23,480 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, November 13th. The stock was 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 sold a total of 63,772 shares of company stock valued at $5,365,455 in the last 90 days. Company insiders own 0.41% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several brokerages recently commented on FAST. Stephens boosted their price target on shares of Fastenal from $56.00 to $75.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a report on Monday, October 14th. Wolfe Research boosted their target price on shares of Fastenal from $74.00 to $76.00 and gave the stock an “underweight” rating in a research note on Thursday, January 16th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. raised their price target on shares of Fastenal from $57.00 to $63.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research note on Thursday, October 10th. Bank of America started coverage on Fastenal in a report on Monday, October 7th. They issued a “buy” rating and a $85.00 price objective on the stock. Finally, UBS Group initiated coverage on Fastenal in a report on Wednesday, November 13th. They set a “neutral” rating and a $88.00 target price for the company. Two investment analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, eight have assigned a hold rating and one has given a buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, the company has an average rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $76.91.

Fastenal Stock Performance

Shares of Fastenal stock opened at $73.24 on Friday. The business’s 50 day moving average price is $76.43 and its 200 day moving average price is $73.72. The company has a market cap of $41.96 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 36.44, a PEG ratio of 3.52 and a beta of 1.02. 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.

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

Fastenal Increases Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, February 28th. Shareholders of record on Friday, January 31st will be issued a $0.43 dividend. This represents a $1.72 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.35%. This is a positive change from Fastenal’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.39. The ex-dividend date is Friday, January 31st. Fastenal’s payout ratio is presently 77.61%.

Fastenal 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.