Fastenal (NASDAQ:FAST) Shares Bought by Jones Financial Companies Lllp

Jones Financial Companies Lllp boosted its stake in shares of Fastenal (NASDAQ:FAST) by 62.7% in the fourth quarter, HoldingsChannel.com reports. The fund owned 49,550 shares of the company’s stock after purchasing an additional 19,092 shares during the period. Jones Financial Companies Lllp’s holdings in Fastenal were worth $3,563,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other large investors also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the stock. Ashton Thomas Securities LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Fastenal during the third quarter worth $25,000. Knuff & Co LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Fastenal during the third quarter worth $27,000. First Personal Financial Services purchased a new stake in shares of Fastenal during the third quarter worth $36,000. Whipplewood Advisors LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Fastenal during the fourth quarter worth $49,000. Finally, R Squared Ltd purchased a new stake in shares of Fastenal during the fourth quarter worth $68,000. 81.38% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Fastenal Trading Down 0.2 %

Shares of FAST stock opened at $74.23 on Wednesday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.03, a current ratio of 4.67 and a quick ratio of 2.28. The firm has a market cap of $42.57 billion, a PE ratio of 36.93, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 3.58 and a beta of 1.02. The company has a 50-day moving average of $74.07 and a two-hundred day moving average of $74.83. Fastenal has a 1-year low of $61.36 and a 1-year high of $84.88.

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). 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 company’s quarterly revenue was up 3.7% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period last year, the business earned $0.46 EPS. On average, analysts predict that Fastenal will post 2.15 EPS for the current year.

Fastenal Increases Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, February 28th. Shareholders of record on Friday, January 31st were paid a dividend of $0.43 per share. This represents a $1.72 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.32%. The ex-dividend date was Friday, January 31st. This is a positive change from Fastenal’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.39. Fastenal’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 85.57%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of research firms have recently issued reports on FAST. Wolfe Research upped their target price on shares of Fastenal from $74.00 to $76.00 and gave the stock an “underweight” rating in a report on Thursday, January 16th. UBS Group began coverage on shares of Fastenal in a report on Wednesday, November 13th. They set a “neutral” rating and a $88.00 target price for the company. Stifel Nicolaus dropped their target price on shares of Fastenal from $86.00 to $82.00 and set a “hold” rating for the company in a report on Tuesday, January 21st. Jefferies Financial Group upped their price objective on shares of Fastenal from $74.00 to $85.00 and gave the company a “hold” rating in a report on Friday, December 6th. Finally, HSBC lowered shares of Fastenal from a “hold” rating to a “reduce” rating and set a $70.00 price objective for the company. in a report on Wednesday, December 11th. Two investment analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, eight have issued a hold rating and one has issued a buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the company has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $76.91.

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.