Fastenal (NASDAQ:FAST) Downgraded to “Moderate Sell” Rating by Hsbc Global Res

Hsbc Global Res cut shares of Fastenal (NASDAQ:FAST) from a hold rating to a moderate sell rating in a research note issued to investors on Wednesday,Zacks.com reports.

Several other equities research analysts have also commented on the stock. UBS Group assumed coverage on shares of Fastenal in a research note on Wednesday, November 13th. They issued a “neutral” rating and a $88.00 price target on the stock. Bank of America started coverage on Fastenal in a research note on Monday, October 7th. They set a “buy” rating and a $85.00 target price on the stock. Robert W. Baird increased their price target on Fastenal from $67.00 to $80.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research note on Monday, October 14th. Stifel Nicolaus downgraded shares of Fastenal from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating and set a $86.00 price objective for the company. in a report on Wednesday. Finally, HSBC cut shares of Fastenal from a “hold” rating to a “reduce” rating and set a $70.00 target price on the stock. in a research note on Wednesday. One research analyst has 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 data from MarketBeat, Fastenal presently has an average rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $77.40.

Fastenal Trading Down 0.3 %

Fastenal stock opened at $79.04 on Wednesday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.03, a quick ratio of 2.29 and a current ratio of 4.40. Fastenal has a 1 year low of $61.33 and a 1 year high of $84.88. The firm’s 50-day moving average is $79.30 and its 200-day moving average is $71.19. The company has a market cap of $45.28 billion, a P/E ratio of 39.32, a PEG ratio of 4.69 and a beta of 1.00.

Fastenal (NASDAQ:FAST) last issued its earnings results on Friday, October 11th. The company reported $0.52 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $0.51 by $0.01. Fastenal had a return on equity of 33.30% and a net margin of 15.44%. The firm had revenue of $1.91 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $1.90 billion. During the same period last year, the company earned $0.52 earnings per share. The firm’s revenue for the quarter was up 3.5% on a year-over-year basis. On average, equities analysts expect that Fastenal will post 2.03 earnings per share for the current year.

Fastenal Dividend Announcement

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, November 22nd. Stockholders of record on Friday, October 25th were issued a dividend of $0.39 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, October 25th. This represents a $1.56 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.97%. Fastenal’s dividend payout ratio is currently 77.61%.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other Fastenal news, CEO Daniel L. Florness sold 31,818 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, November 11th. The shares were sold at an average price of $84.50, for a total value of $2,688,621.00. Following the transaction, 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 transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through the SEC website. Also, VP John Lewis Soderberg sold 488 shares of the stock in a transaction on Monday, October 14th. The stock was sold at an average price of $76.32, for a total transaction of $37,244.16. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last 90 days, insiders sold 158,289 shares of company stock valued at $12,639,438. Company insiders own 0.41% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

A number of hedge funds have recently made changes to their positions in the stock. King Luther Capital Management Corp grew its holdings in Fastenal by 1.6% during the third quarter. King Luther Capital Management Corp now owns 8,664 shares of the company’s stock valued at $619,000 after purchasing an additional 136 shares during the last quarter. Verdence Capital Advisors LLC boosted its holdings in shares of Fastenal by 1.9% during the 3rd quarter. Verdence Capital Advisors LLC now owns 7,628 shares of the company’s stock worth $545,000 after buying an additional 142 shares during the period. Thurston Springer Miller Herd & Titak Inc. grew its stake in Fastenal by 5.8% in the 3rd quarter. Thurston Springer Miller Herd & Titak Inc. now owns 2,607 shares of the company’s stock valued at $186,000 after buying an additional 143 shares during the last quarter. Compass Ion Advisors LLC raised its holdings in Fastenal by 1.5% in the 3rd quarter. Compass Ion Advisors LLC now owns 9,927 shares of the company’s stock worth $709,000 after acquiring an additional 146 shares during the period. Finally, Catalina Capital Group LLC lifted its position in Fastenal by 4.5% during the 3rd quarter. Catalina Capital Group LLC now owns 3,359 shares of the company’s stock worth $240,000 after acquiring an additional 146 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 81.38% of the company’s stock.

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.