Sabal Trust CO Reduces Position in Fastenal (NASDAQ:FAST)

Sabal Trust CO cut its holdings in shares of Fastenal (NASDAQ:FAST) by 3.2% during the fourth quarter, HoldingsChannel.com reports. The fund owned 303,706 shares of the company’s stock after selling 9,930 shares during the period. Sabal Trust CO’s holdings in Fastenal were worth $21,839,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other large investors also recently bought and sold shares of the business. Ashton Thomas Securities LLC purchased a new position in shares of Fastenal during the 3rd quarter worth $25,000. Knuff & Co LLC acquired a new stake in Fastenal during the third quarter worth about $27,000. First Personal Financial Services acquired a new stake in Fastenal during the third quarter worth about $36,000. R Squared Ltd purchased a new position in Fastenal during the fourth quarter worth about $68,000. Finally, Eastern Bank boosted its holdings in Fastenal by 440.7% in the 4th quarter. Eastern Bank now owns 984 shares of the company’s stock valued at $71,000 after purchasing an additional 802 shares during the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 81.38% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of brokerages have recently issued reports on FAST. HSBC downgraded shares of Fastenal from a “hold” rating to a “reduce” rating and set a $70.00 price target for the company. in a report on Wednesday, December 11th. Wolfe Research raised their target price on Fastenal from $74.00 to $76.00 and gave the stock an “underweight” rating in a research note on Thursday, January 16th. UBS Group initiated coverage on Fastenal in a research note on Wednesday, November 13th. They issued a “neutral” rating and a $88.00 price target on the stock. Jefferies Financial Group raised their price objective on Fastenal from $74.00 to $85.00 and gave the stock a “hold” rating in a research report on Friday, December 6th. Finally, Hsbc Global Res cut shares of Fastenal from a “hold” rating to a “moderate sell” rating in a research report on Wednesday, December 11th. Two analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, eight have given a hold rating and one has given a buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, Fastenal presently has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $76.91.

Fastenal Trading Down 0.2 %

Shares of FAST stock opened at $74.60 on Wednesday. Fastenal has a fifty-two week low of $61.36 and a fifty-two week high of $84.88. The company has a 50 day moving average price of $74.09 and a 200 day moving average price of $74.54. The stock has a market capitalization of $42.78 billion, a P/E ratio of 37.11, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 3.58 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 (NASDAQ:FAST) last issued 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). Fastenal had a net margin of 15.25% and a return on equity of 32.55%. The business had revenue of $1.82 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $1.84 billion. During the same period in the prior year, the business earned $0.46 EPS. The business’s quarterly revenue was up 3.7% on a year-over-year basis. Equities research analysts predict that Fastenal will post 2.15 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Fastenal Increases Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, February 28th. Stockholders of record on Friday, January 31st will be given a dividend of $0.43 per share. This is a boost from Fastenal’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.39. This represents a $1.72 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 2.31%. The ex-dividend date is Friday, January 31st. Fastenal’s payout ratio is 85.57%.

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, 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.