Gateway Investment Advisers LLC Cuts Stock Position in Fastenal Company $FAST

Gateway Investment Advisers LLC cut its holdings in Fastenal Company (NASDAQ:FAST) by 38.7% in the fourth quarter, Holdings Channel reports. The institutional investor owned 34,848 shares of the company’s stock after selling 22,013 shares during the quarter. Gateway Investment Advisers LLC’s holdings in Fastenal were worth $1,398,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other institutional investors and hedge funds have also made changes to their positions in FAST. REAP Financial Group LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Fastenal in the third quarter valued at approximately $30,000. Field & Main Bank purchased a new stake in shares of Fastenal in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $30,000. First Horizon Corp purchased a new stake in shares of Fastenal in the third quarter valued at approximately $33,000. Manning & Napier Advisors LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Fastenal in the third quarter valued at approximately $35,000. Finally, Tradewinds Capital Management LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Fastenal during the fourth quarter worth approximately $35,000. 81.38% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several analysts recently commented on FAST shares. Robert W. Baird dropped their price target on Fastenal from $52.00 to $50.00 and set an “outperform” rating for the company in a research report on Tuesday, April 14th. Bank of America boosted their price target on Fastenal from $48.00 to $55.00 in a research report on Monday, April 13th. Weiss Ratings reiterated a “buy (b-)” rating on shares of Fastenal in a research report on Friday, March 27th. Morgan Stanley reiterated a “positive” rating and set a $45.00 price target on shares of Fastenal in a research report on Thursday, March 5th. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. boosted their price target on Fastenal from $46.00 to $47.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research report on Thursday, April 9th. Five research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, six have issued a Hold rating and two have issued a Sell rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, Fastenal presently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $49.77.

Fastenal Stock Performance

NASDAQ FAST opened at $44.17 on Friday. The stock’s fifty day moving average is $45.63 and its two-hundred day moving average is $43.62. The firm has a market capitalization of $50.71 billion, a P/E ratio of 38.75, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.83 and a beta of 0.75. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.03, a quick ratio of 2.34 and a current ratio of 4.39. Fastenal Company has a fifty-two week low of $38.97 and a fifty-two week high of $50.63.

Fastenal (NASDAQ:FAST) last released its quarterly earnings data on Monday, April 13th. The company reported $0.30 earnings per share for the quarter, hitting analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.30. The company had revenue of $2.20 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $2.19 billion. Fastenal had a return on equity of 33.25% and a net margin of 15.39%.The firm’s revenue for the quarter was up 12.4% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the previous year, the company posted $0.52 earnings per share. On average, research analysts anticipate that Fastenal Company will post 1.23 earnings per share for the current year.

Fastenal Announces Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, May 26th. Shareholders of record on Tuesday, April 28th will be paid a dividend of $0.24 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Tuesday, April 28th. This represents a $0.96 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 2.2%. Fastenal’s payout ratio is 84.21%.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other Fastenal news, Director Reyne K. Wisecup sold 36,920 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Thursday, March 5th. The stock was sold at an average price of $47.34, for a total transaction of $1,747,792.80. Following the transaction, the director owned 40,000 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $1,893,600. The trade was a 48.00% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is accessible through the SEC website. Company insiders own 0.28% of the company’s stock.

Fastenal Company 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.