KPP Advisory Services LLC Purchases 323 Shares of Fastenal (NASDAQ:FAST)

KPP Advisory Services LLC raised its stake in shares of Fastenal (NASDAQ:FAST) by 4.4% in the 4th quarter, Holdings Channel.com reports. The institutional investor owned 7,671 shares of the company’s stock after purchasing an additional 323 shares during the quarter. KPP Advisory Services LLC’s holdings in Fastenal were worth $552,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other institutional investors also recently modified their holdings of the company. Aaron Wealth Advisors LLC acquired a new position in shares of Fastenal during the 3rd quarter worth about $310,000. Comgest Global Investors S.A.S. grew its position in shares of Fastenal by 73.0% during the 3rd quarter. Comgest Global Investors S.A.S. now owns 87,081 shares of the company’s stock worth $6,219,000 after buying an additional 36,742 shares during the period. PNC Financial Services Group Inc. grew its position in shares of Fastenal by 1.8% during the 3rd quarter. PNC Financial Services Group Inc. now owns 369,267 shares of the company’s stock worth $26,373,000 after buying an additional 6,488 shares during the period. Matrix Trust Co acquired a new position in shares of Fastenal during the 4th quarter worth about $1,756,000. Finally, Franklin Resources Inc. grew its position in shares of Fastenal by 3.8% during the 3rd quarter. Franklin Resources Inc. now owns 4,572,999 shares of the company’s stock worth $350,703,000 after buying an additional 165,423 shares during the period. 81.38% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Insider Transactions at Fastenal

In other news, Director Daniel L. Johnson sold 8,474 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, November 13th. The stock was sold at an average price of $83.36, for a total transaction of $706,392.64. Following the sale, the director now owns 10,595 shares in the company, valued at $883,199.20. This represents a 44.44 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available at this link. Also, CEO Daniel L. Florness sold 31,818 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, November 11th. The stock was sold at an average price of $84.50, for a total value of $2,688,621.00. Following the sale, the chief executive officer now owns 286,018 shares in the company, valued at approximately $24,168,521. This represents a 10.01 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold a total of 63,772 shares of company stock worth $5,365,455 in the last 90 days. Corporate insiders own 0.41% of the company’s stock.

Fastenal Trading Down 2.3 %

NASDAQ:FAST opened at $73.24 on Monday. Fastenal has a twelve month low of $61.36 and a twelve month high of $84.88. The company has a quick ratio of 2.28, a current ratio of 4.67 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.03. The business has a 50 day moving average price of $76.43 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $73.76. The company has a market cap of $41.96 billion, a P/E ratio of 36.44, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 3.48 and a beta of 1.02.

Fastenal (NASDAQ:FAST) last released its quarterly earnings results on Friday, January 17th. The company reported $0.46 earnings per share for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.48 by ($0.02). Fastenal had a return on equity of 32.55% and a net margin of 15.25%. The firm had revenue of $1.82 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $1.84 billion. During the same period last year, the company earned $0.46 EPS. The company’s revenue was up 3.7% compared to the same quarter last year. As a group, analysts expect that Fastenal will post 2.15 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Fastenal Increases Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, February 28th. Stockholders of record on Friday, January 31st will be paid a dividend of $0.43 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, January 31st. This represents a $1.72 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 2.35%. This is a boost from Fastenal’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.39. Fastenal’s dividend payout ratio is currently 85.57%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several equities analysts have recently issued reports on the company. Morgan Stanley boosted their target price on Fastenal from $72.00 to $76.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a research report on Monday, October 14th. Hsbc Global Res lowered Fastenal from a “hold” rating to a “moderate sell” rating in a research report on Wednesday, December 11th. Stifel Nicolaus decreased their price objective on Fastenal from $86.00 to $82.00 and set a “hold” rating for the company in a research report on Tuesday, January 21st. Stephens boosted their price objective on Fastenal from $56.00 to $75.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a research report on Monday, October 14th. Finally, Robert W. Baird boosted their price objective on Fastenal from $67.00 to $80.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research report on Monday, October 14th. Two equities research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, eight have issued a hold rating and one has issued a buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company presently has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $76.91.

Fastenal 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.