Griffin Asset Management Inc. Sells 495 Shares of Fastenal (NASDAQ:FAST)

Griffin Asset Management Inc. decreased its position in Fastenal (NASDAQ:FAST) by 2.6% during the second quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund owned 18,289 shares of the company’s stock after selling 495 shares during the quarter. Griffin Asset Management Inc.’s holdings in Fastenal were worth $1,149,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC).

A number of other large investors have also added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Essex Financial Services Inc. increased its stake in Fastenal by 1.8% in the 4th quarter. Essex Financial Services Inc. now owns 8,539 shares of the company’s stock worth $553,000 after acquiring an additional 148 shares during the last quarter. Penobscot Investment Management Company Inc. increased its stake in Fastenal by 1.1% in the 1st quarter. Penobscot Investment Management Company Inc. now owns 13,350 shares of the company’s stock worth $1,030,000 after acquiring an additional 150 shares during the last quarter. Panagora Asset Management Inc. boosted its holdings in shares of Fastenal by 0.8% in the 4th quarter. Panagora Asset Management Inc. now owns 19,095 shares of the company’s stock worth $1,237,000 after purchasing an additional 152 shares during the period. Sara Bay Financial boosted its holdings in shares of Fastenal by 1.3% in the 2nd quarter. Sara Bay Financial now owns 11,872 shares of the company’s stock worth $746,000 after purchasing an additional 155 shares during the period. Finally, Team Hewins LLC boosted its holdings in shares of Fastenal by 4.8% in the 1st quarter. Team Hewins LLC now owns 3,404 shares of the company’s stock worth $263,000 after purchasing an additional 157 shares during the period. Institutional investors own 81.38% of the company’s stock.

Insider Activity

In other news, CEO Daniel L. Florness sold 45,744 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, August 21st. The stock was sold at an average price of $68.14, for a total value of $3,116,996.16. Following the sale, the chief executive officer now owns 286,018 shares in the company, valued at $19,489,266.52. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this link. In other Fastenal news, CEO Daniel L. Florness sold 45,744 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, August 21st. The stock was sold at an average price of $68.14, for a total transaction of $3,116,996.16. Following the transaction, the chief executive officer now owns 286,018 shares in the company, valued at $19,489,266.52. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through the SEC website. Also, EVP James C. Jansen sold 11,428 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, May 29th. The stock was sold at an average price of $64.07, for a total value of $732,191.96. Following the transaction, the executive vice president now owns 26,176 shares in the company, valued at approximately $1,677,096.32. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Corporate insiders own 0.41% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of brokerages have recently commented on FAST. Robert W. Baird dropped their target price on Fastenal from $71.00 to $69.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a report on Tuesday, May 7th. Jefferies Financial Group dropped their target price on Fastenal from $74.00 to $65.00 and set a “hold” rating for the company in a report on Thursday, July 11th. Stephens reiterated an “equal weight” rating and issued a $56.00 target price on shares of Fastenal in a report on Monday, July 15th. Finally, Stifel Nicolaus reiterated a “buy” rating and issued a $80.00 target price (down previously from $85.00) on shares of Fastenal in a report on Monday, July 15th. Six investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and one has assigned a buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, the stock presently has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $66.67.

Fastenal Stock Down 0.9 %

Shares of FAST traded down $0.64 during trading hours on Thursday, hitting $67.51. The company had a trading volume of 1,604,923 shares, compared to its average volume of 3,568,830. The company has a market capitalization of $38.65 billion, a PE ratio of 33.64, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 3.65 and a beta of 1.01. The company has a current ratio of 4.39, a quick ratio of 2.29 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.04. Fastenal has a one year low of $53.83 and a one year high of $79.04. The company’s fifty day moving average price is $66.00 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $68.88.

Fastenal (NASDAQ:FAST) last announced its earnings results on Friday, July 12th. The company reported $0.51 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, meeting the consensus estimate of $0.51. The company had revenue of $1.92 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $1.91 billion. Fastenal had a return on equity of 33.54% and a net margin of 15.54%. The firm’s quarterly revenue was up 1.8% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the prior year, the company posted $0.52 EPS. As a group, equities analysts forecast that Fastenal will post 2.05 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Fastenal Dividend Announcement

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, August 23rd. Stockholders of record on Friday, July 26th will be issued a $0.39 dividend. This represents a $1.56 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 2.31%. The ex-dividend date is Friday, July 26th. Fastenal’s dividend payout ratio is presently 77.61%.

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.