Fastenal (NASDAQ:FAST) Now Covered by Analysts at HSBC

HSBC began coverage on shares of Fastenal (NASDAQ:FAST) in a report published on Friday morning, MarketBeat Ratings reports. The brokerage issued a hold rating and a $59.00 target price on the stock.

A number of other equities analysts have also recently issued reports on FAST. Stephens cut Fastenal from an overweight rating to an equal weight rating and set a $60.00 target price for the company. in a report on Thursday, July 13th. They noted that the move was a valuation call. Robert W. Baird increased their target price on Fastenal from $57.00 to $60.00 in a report on Friday, July 14th. Jefferies Financial Group increased their target price on Fastenal from $50.00 to $60.00 in a report on Friday, June 16th. Finally, StockNews.com initiated coverage on Fastenal in a report on Thursday, August 17th. They issued a hold rating for the company. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, six have given a hold rating and one has assigned a buy rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock currently has a consensus rating of Hold and a consensus target price of $57.00.

Fastenal Trading Down 0.6 %

Fastenal stock opened at $54.91 on Friday. The business has a 50 day moving average price of $57.11 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $55.33. The company has a quick ratio of 2.13, a current ratio of 4.26 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.06. The stock has a market cap of $31.37 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 27.87, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 3.07 and a beta of 1.16. Fastenal has a 12 month low of $43.73 and a 12 month high of $59.43.

Fastenal (NASDAQ:FAST) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, July 13th. The company reported $0.52 EPS for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $0.53 by ($0.01). The firm had revenue of $1.88 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $1.89 billion. Fastenal had a net margin of 15.52% and a return on equity of 34.63%. The company’s revenue was up 5.9% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period last year, the company earned $0.50 EPS. As a group, equities analysts forecast that Fastenal will post 1.98 EPS for the current year.

Fastenal Dividend Announcement

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, August 24th. Shareholders of record on Thursday, July 27th were given a $0.35 dividend. The ex-dividend date was Wednesday, July 26th. This represents a $1.40 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 2.55%. Fastenal’s payout ratio is 71.07%.

Insider Buying and Selling at Fastenal

In other Fastenal news, Director Reyne K. Wisecup sold 19,564 shares of the stock in a transaction on Monday, August 21st. The stock was sold at an average price of $56.78, for a total value of $1,110,843.92. Following the transaction, the director now directly owns 20,000 shares in the company, valued at approximately $1,135,600. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this link. In related news, Director Michael J. Ancius purchased 500 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Monday, July 17th. The shares were bought at an average price of $57.53 per share, with a total value of $28,765.00. Following the purchase, the director now directly owns 28,765 shares in the company, valued at approximately $1,654,850.45. The acquisition was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this link. Also, Director Reyne K. Wisecup sold 19,564 shares of the stock in a transaction on Monday, August 21st. The shares were sold at an average price of $56.78, for a total value of $1,110,843.92. Following the completion of the transaction, the director now directly owns 20,000 shares in the company, valued at approximately $1,135,600. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Corporate insiders own 0.45% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Trading of Fastenal

Several hedge funds have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the business. Portside Wealth Group LLC acquired a new stake in Fastenal during the 2nd quarter worth $2,152,000. CTC Alternative Strategies Ltd. acquired a new stake in Fastenal during the 2nd quarter worth $307,000. Virginia Retirement Systems ET AL acquired a new stake in shares of Fastenal in the 2nd quarter valued at about $34,812,000. Comerica Bank acquired a new stake in shares of Fastenal in the 2nd quarter valued at about $320,630,000. Finally, Vestor Capital LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Fastenal in the 2nd quarter valued at about $86,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 78.47% of the company’s stock.

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, 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, which are used in manufactured products and construction projects, as well as in the maintenance and repair of machines.