Haverford Trust Co Takes $1.55 Million Position in Fastenal Company $FAST

Haverford Trust Co acquired a new position in Fastenal Company (NASDAQ:FAST) in the second quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund acquired 32,210 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $1,547,000.

Other hedge funds have also bought and sold shares of the company. Wiregrass Investment Management LLC bought a new position in shares of Fastenal in the 4th quarter worth approximately $1,020,000. Swiss Life Asset Management Ltd boosted its holdings in shares of Fastenal by 2.7% in the fourth quarter. Swiss Life Asset Management Ltd now owns 1,491,994 shares of the company’s stock worth $59,874,000 after buying an additional 39,406 shares during the last quarter. Fideuram Asset Management Ireland dac bought a new stake in Fastenal during the fourth quarter valued at approximately $4,041,000. National Pension Service grew its position in Fastenal by 2.9% during the fourth quarter. National Pension Service now owns 1,603,839 shares of the company’s stock valued at $64,362,000 after buying an additional 45,260 shares during the period. Finally, Thrivent Financial for Lutherans increased its holdings in Fastenal by 16.4% during the fourth quarter. Thrivent Financial for Lutherans now owns 6,820,172 shares of the company’s stock valued at $273,699,000 after buying an additional 959,731 shares during the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 81.38% of the company’s stock.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In related news, Director Michael J. Ancius sold 3,000 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Tuesday, July 28th. The shares were sold at an average price of $49.00, for a total transaction of $147,000.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the director owned 58,690 shares in the company, valued at approximately $2,875,810. This represents a 4.86% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. Also, Director Rita J. Heise sold 34,964 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Wednesday, August 5th. The shares were sold at an average price of $50.05, for a total transaction of $1,749,948.20. Following the transaction, the director directly owned 20,000 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $1,001,000. The trade was a 63.61% decrease in their ownership of the stock. Additional details regarding this sale are available in the official SEC disclosure. 0.28% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

Fastenal Stock Up 1.2%

Shares of FAST opened at $51.26 on Friday. The business’s 50 day moving average is $47.96 and its 200 day moving average is $46.37. The company has a current ratio of 4.18, a quick ratio of 2.21 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.01. Fastenal Company has a 12-month low of $38.97 and a 12-month high of $52.92. The company has a market capitalization of $58.82 billion, a PE ratio of 43.44, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 3.20 and a beta of 0.72.

Fastenal (NASDAQ:FAST) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, July 14th. The company reported $0.33 earnings per share for the quarter, hitting the consensus estimate of $0.33. Fastenal had a return on equity of 34.03% and a net margin of 15.45%.The business had revenue of $2.39 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $2.34 billion. During the same period in the prior year, the company posted $0.29 EPS. The firm’s revenue for the quarter was up 14.7% compared to the same quarter last year. Research analysts expect that Fastenal Company will post 1.26 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Fastenal Increases Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, August 25th. Stockholders of record on Tuesday, July 28th will be issued a $0.26 dividend. This represents a $1.04 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 2.0%. This is a boost from Fastenal’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.24. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Tuesday, July 28th. Fastenal’s payout ratio is presently 88.14%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several research firms have weighed in on FAST. Weiss Ratings downgraded shares of Fastenal from a “buy (b)” rating to a “buy (b-)” rating in a research report on Tuesday, July 21st. Barclays cut their price objective on shares of Fastenal from $47.00 to $46.00 and set an “equal weight” rating for the company in a research report on Thursday, July 16th. Rothschild & Co Redburn set a $55.00 target price on Fastenal and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Monday, July 13th. Sanford C. Bernstein reiterated an “underperform” rating on shares of Fastenal in a research report on Wednesday, July 15th. Finally, DA Davidson reiterated a “neutral” rating and set a $46.00 target price on shares of Fastenal in a research report on Wednesday, July 15th. Five equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, five have assigned a Hold rating and two have assigned a Sell rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, Fastenal has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $49.17.

About Fastenal

Fastenal (NASDAQ: FAST) is a wholesale distributor of industrial and construction supplies, best known for its broad assortment of fasteners such as bolts, nuts, screws and anchors. Founded in Winona, Minnesota, Fastenal has grown from a regional supplier into a national and international distributor serving a wide range of end markets, including manufacturing, construction, maintenance, repair and operations (MRO), and government customers. The company is publicly traded and operates through a network of locally staffed branches combined with national distribution capabilities.

Product offerings extend beyond fasteners to include tools, safety and personal protective equipment, power transmission components, cutting and welding supplies, janitorial and material handling items, and other industrial consumables.