Vise Technologies Inc. Makes New Investment in Fastenal Company $FAST

Vise Technologies Inc. bought a new stake in shares of Fastenal Company (NASDAQ:FAST) in the second quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm bought 60,055 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $2,884,000.

Several other large investors have also recently made changes to their positions in FAST. Integrated Wealth Concepts LLC grew its stake in shares of Fastenal by 2.4% in the 1st quarter. Integrated Wealth Concepts LLC now owns 6,276 shares of the company’s stock worth $487,000 after buying an additional 147 shares during the last quarter. Tandem Investment Advisors Inc. raised its stake in Fastenal by 1.8% during the first quarter. Tandem Investment Advisors Inc. now owns 12,356 shares of the company’s stock valued at $573,000 after buying an additional 224 shares during the last quarter. Sittner & Nelson LLC raised its stake in Fastenal by 0.3% during the fourth quarter. Sittner & Nelson LLC now owns 68,495 shares of the company’s stock valued at $2,749,000 after buying an additional 226 shares during the last quarter. Sound Income Strategies LLC boosted its holdings in Fastenal by 12.9% in the first quarter. Sound Income Strategies LLC now owns 2,025 shares of the company’s stock worth $94,000 after acquiring an additional 232 shares in the last quarter. Finally, L2 Asset Management LLC boosted its holdings in Fastenal by 4.8% in the third quarter. L2 Asset Management LLC now owns 5,389 shares of the company’s stock worth $264,000 after acquiring an additional 248 shares in the last quarter. 81.38% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of equities research analysts have recently commented on the company. Robert W. Baird set a $54.00 target price on Fastenal in a research note on Friday, August 7th. Weiss Ratings cut shares of Fastenal from a “buy (b)” rating to a “buy (b-)” rating in a research note on Tuesday, July 21st. Rothschild & Co Redburn set a $55.00 price target on shares of Fastenal and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Monday, July 13th. DA Davidson reissued a “neutral” rating and set a $46.00 price objective on shares of Fastenal in a research report on Wednesday, July 15th. Finally, Wolfe Research restated an “underperform” rating and set a $47.00 price objective on shares of Fastenal in a research note on Thursday, July 9th. Five equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, five have issued a Hold rating and two have assigned a Sell rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat, Fastenal has an average rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $49.17.

Insider Activity

In related news, Director Rita J. Heise sold 34,964 shares of Fastenal stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, August 5th. The stock was sold at an average price of $50.05, for a total value of $1,749,948.20. Following the completion of the sale, the director directly owned 20,000 shares in the company, valued at approximately $1,001,000. This trade represents a 63.61% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Also, Director Michael J. Ancius sold 3,000 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, July 28th. The stock was sold at an average price of $49.00, for a total value of $147,000.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the director directly owned 58,690 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $2,875,810. This trade represents a 4.86% decrease in their position. Additional details regarding this sale are available in the official SEC disclosure. 0.28% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Fastenal Stock Performance

FAST stock opened at $51.26 on Friday. The stock’s 50 day simple moving average is $47.96 and its 200 day simple moving average is $46.37. The company has a current ratio of 4.18, a quick ratio of 2.21 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.01. Fastenal Company has a 12-month low of $38.97 and a 12-month high of $52.92. The stock has a market capitalization of $58.82 billion, a PE ratio of 43.44, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 3.16 and a beta of 0.72.

Fastenal (NASDAQ:FAST) last posted its earnings results on Tuesday, July 14th. The company reported $0.33 EPS for the quarter, hitting analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.33. Fastenal had a return on equity of 34.03% and a net margin of 15.45%.The business had revenue of $2.39 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $2.34 billion. During the same quarter last year, the company earned $0.29 EPS. The company’s quarterly revenue was up 14.7% compared to the same quarter last year. As a group, research analysts forecast that Fastenal Company will post 1.26 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Fastenal Increases Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, August 25th. Investors of record on Tuesday, July 28th will be given a dividend of $0.26 per share. This represents a $1.04 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 2.0%. This is a boost from Fastenal’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.24. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Tuesday, July 28th. Fastenal’s payout ratio is 88.14%.

Fastenal Profile

Fastenal (NASDAQ: FAST) is a wholesale distributor of industrial and construction supplies, best known for its broad assortment of fasteners such as bolts, nuts, screws and anchors. Founded in Winona, Minnesota, Fastenal has grown from a regional supplier into a national and international distributor serving a wide range of end markets, including manufacturing, construction, maintenance, repair and operations (MRO), and government customers. The company is publicly traded and operates through a network of locally staffed branches combined with national distribution capabilities.

Product offerings extend beyond fasteners to include tools, safety and personal protective equipment, power transmission components, cutting and welding supplies, janitorial and material handling items, and other industrial consumables.