Fastenal (FAST) Set to Announce Earnings on Friday

Fastenal (NASDAQ:FAST) is scheduled to issue its quarterly earnings data before the market opens on Friday, January 17th. Analysts expect the company to announce earnings of $0.48 per share and revenue of $1,842,560.16 billion for the quarter.

Fastenal Stock Performance

Shares of NASDAQ FAST traded up $0.53 during trading on Wednesday, hitting $74.27. The company had a trading volume of 3,286,784 shares, compared to its average volume of 2,774,354. Fastenal has a 12 month low of $61.36 and a 12 month high of $84.88. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.03, a quick ratio of 2.29 and a current ratio of 4.40. The firm has a market capitalization of $42.55 billion, a P/E ratio of 36.95, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 4.64 and a beta of 1.02. The stock has a 50 day simple moving average of $78.41 and a 200 day simple moving average of $72.81.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

FAST has been the topic of several analyst reports. Robert W. Baird lifted their price target on shares of Fastenal from $67.00 to $80.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a report on Monday, October 14th. Morgan Stanley lifted their target price on shares of Fastenal from $72.00 to $76.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a research note on Monday, October 14th. UBS Group assumed coverage on Fastenal in a research note on Wednesday, November 13th. They issued a “neutral” rating and a $88.00 price target for the company. HSBC cut Fastenal from a “hold” rating to a “reduce” rating and set a $70.00 price target on the stock. in a report on Wednesday, December 11th. Finally, Jefferies Financial Group increased their target price on Fastenal from $74.00 to $85.00 and gave the stock a “hold” rating in a research report on Friday, December 6th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, eight have given a hold rating and one has given a buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, Fastenal currently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $77.40.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other Fastenal news, VP Charles S. Miller sold 23,480 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, November 13th. The stock was sold at an average price of $83.92, for a total transaction of $1,970,441.60. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Also, CEO Daniel L. Florness sold 31,818 shares of Fastenal 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 completion of the transaction, the chief executive officer now owns 286,018 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $24,168,521. This trade represents a 10.01 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold 74,660 shares of company stock valued at $6,211,126 in the last three months. Corporate insiders own 0.41% of the company’s stock.

About Fastenal

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.