CWS Financial Advisors LLC Buys 1,664 Shares of Fastenal (NASDAQ:FAST)

CWS Financial Advisors LLC lifted its stake in Fastenal (NASDAQ:FAST) by 29.6% during the 4th quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm owned 7,283 shares of the company’s stock after buying an additional 1,664 shares during the quarter. CWS Financial Advisors LLC’s holdings in Fastenal were worth $524,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission.

Other institutional investors have also recently made changes to their positions in the company. Ashton Thomas Securities LLC bought a new position in shares of Fastenal in the third quarter worth about $25,000. Knuff & Co LLC bought a new position in shares of Fastenal in the third quarter worth about $27,000. First Personal Financial Services bought a new position in shares of Fastenal in the third quarter worth about $36,000. R Squared Ltd bought a new position in shares of Fastenal in the fourth quarter worth about $68,000. Finally, Eastern Bank raised its stake in shares of Fastenal by 440.7% in the fourth quarter. Eastern Bank now owns 984 shares of the company’s stock worth $71,000 after buying an additional 802 shares during the period. Institutional investors own 81.38% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several research analysts have recently commented on FAST shares. 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 note on Friday, December 6th. UBS Group initiated coverage on Fastenal in a research note on Wednesday, November 13th. They set a “neutral” rating and a $88.00 target price on the stock. HSBC downgraded 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, December 11th. Hsbc Global Res downgraded Fastenal from a “hold” rating to a “moderate sell” rating in a research note on Wednesday, December 11th. Finally, Wolfe Research lifted their target price on Fastenal from $74.00 to $76.00 and gave the company an “underweight” rating in a research note on Thursday, January 16th. 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 company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock presently has an average rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $76.91.

Fastenal Stock Performance

NASDAQ:FAST opened at $74.78 on Tuesday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.03, a current ratio of 4.67 and a quick ratio of 2.28. Fastenal has a 1 year low of $61.36 and a 1 year high of $84.88. The stock’s 50 day simple moving average is $74.15 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $74.49. The company has a market cap of $42.88 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 37.20, a PEG ratio of 3.58 and a beta of 1.02.

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

Fastenal Increases Dividend

The business also recently announced 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. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, January 31st. This represents a $1.72 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 2.30%. This is an increase from Fastenal’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.39. Fastenal’s payout ratio is currently 85.57%.

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.