Everence Capital Management Inc. Has $1.04 Million Stake in Fastenal (NASDAQ:FAST)

Everence Capital Management Inc. raised its holdings in Fastenal (NASDAQ:FAST) by 63.2% in the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm owned 15,990 shares of the company’s stock after acquiring an additional 6,190 shares during the period. Everence Capital Management Inc.’s holdings in Fastenal were worth $1,036,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission.

Other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Hartford Financial Management Inc. boosted its position in shares of Fastenal by 46.9% during the fourth quarter. Hartford Financial Management Inc. now owns 479 shares of the company’s stock worth $31,000 after buying an additional 153 shares during the period. Resurgent Financial Advisors LLC acquired a new position in shares of Fastenal during the fourth quarter worth about $33,000. Harel Insurance Investments & Financial Services Ltd. acquired a new position in shares of Fastenal during the fourth quarter worth about $35,000. Sunbelt Securities Inc. boosted its position in shares of Fastenal by 131.7% during the second quarter. Sunbelt Securities Inc. now owns 600 shares of the company’s stock worth $35,000 after buying an additional 341 shares during the period. Finally, Quarry LP boosted its position in shares of Fastenal by 184.9% during the first quarter. Quarry LP now owns 678 shares of the company’s stock worth $37,000 after buying an additional 440 shares during the period. 81.38% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Analyst Ratings Changes

FAST has been the subject of several recent research reports. Stifel Nicolaus upped their price objective on Fastenal from $75.00 to $85.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Monday, March 18th. Robert W. Baird reduced their price objective on Fastenal from $77.00 to $71.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a research report on Friday, April 12th. HSBC upped their target price on Fastenal from $59.00 to $64.00 and gave the stock a “hold” rating in a report on Monday. Finally, Loop Capital dropped their target price on Fastenal from $71.00 to $66.00 and set a “hold” rating on the stock in a report on Monday. Five research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and one has issued a buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, Fastenal presently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $67.67.

Fastenal Stock Performance

FAST opened at $69.01 on Wednesday. Fastenal has a 52-week low of $52.28 and a 52-week high of $79.04. The firm has a market capitalization of $39.49 billion, a PE ratio of 34.05, a PEG ratio of 3.62 and a beta of 1.05. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.06, a quick ratio of 2.49 and a current ratio of 4.83. The business’s 50-day simple moving average is $73.72 and its 200 day simple moving average is $66.18.

Fastenal (NASDAQ:FAST) last released its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, April 11th. The company reported $0.52 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $0.53 by ($0.01). The business had revenue of $1.90 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $1.91 billion. Fastenal had a net margin of 15.68% and a return on equity of 33.98%. Fastenal’s quarterly revenue was up 1.9% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the prior year, the company earned $0.52 EPS. As a group, sell-side analysts expect that Fastenal will post 2.13 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Fastenal Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, May 23rd. Shareholders of record on Thursday, April 25th will be paid a $0.39 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Wednesday, April 24th. This represents a $1.56 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.26%. Fastenal’s dividend payout ratio is 77.23%.

Insider Buying and Selling at Fastenal

In other Fastenal news, Director Reyne K. Wisecup sold 34,042 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, January 19th. The stock was sold at an average price of $68.48, for a total value of $2,331,196.16. Following the sale, the director now owns 20,000 shares in the company, valued at $1,369,600. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this link. In other news, VP Charles S. Miller sold 23,590 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, January 22nd. The stock was sold at an average price of $69.25, for a total transaction of $1,633,607.50. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available at the SEC website. Also, Director Reyne K. Wisecup sold 34,042 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, January 19th. The stock was sold at an average price of $68.48, for a total value of $2,331,196.16. Following the transaction, the director now owns 20,000 shares in the company, valued at approximately $1,369,600. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold 105,682 shares of company stock worth $7,375,853 over the last 90 days. Company insiders own 0.41% of the company’s stock.

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.