Crestwood Advisors Group LLC Raises Stake in Fastenal (NASDAQ:FAST)

Crestwood Advisors Group LLC boosted its position in Fastenal (NASDAQ:FAST) by 8.9% in the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor owned 6,608 shares of the company’s stock after buying an additional 540 shares during the quarter. Crestwood Advisors Group LLC’s holdings in Fastenal were worth $475,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC).

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also bought and sold shares of the company. King Luther Capital Management Corp boosted its stake in Fastenal by 1.6% in the third quarter. King Luther Capital Management Corp now owns 8,664 shares of the company’s stock worth $619,000 after buying an additional 136 shares in the last quarter. Verdence Capital Advisors LLC boosted its stake in shares of Fastenal by 1.9% during the third quarter. Verdence Capital Advisors LLC now owns 7,628 shares of the company’s stock valued at $545,000 after purchasing an additional 142 shares during the period. HB Wealth Management LLC boosted its stake in shares of Fastenal by 1.2% during the fourth quarter. HB Wealth Management LLC now owns 11,674 shares of the company’s stock valued at $840,000 after purchasing an additional 142 shares during the period. Catalina Capital Group LLC boosted its stake in shares of Fastenal by 4.5% during the third quarter. Catalina Capital Group LLC now owns 3,359 shares of the company’s stock valued at $240,000 after purchasing an additional 146 shares during the period. Finally, Geneos Wealth Management Inc. boosted its stake in shares of Fastenal by 8.9% during the fourth quarter. Geneos Wealth Management Inc. now owns 2,038 shares of the company’s stock valued at $147,000 after purchasing an additional 166 shares during the period. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 81.38% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of analysts have recently weighed in on FAST shares. Jefferies Financial Group increased their price objective on Fastenal from $74.00 to $85.00 and gave the company a “hold” rating in a research note on Friday, December 6th. UBS Group assumed coverage on Fastenal in a report on Wednesday, November 13th. They issued a “neutral” rating and a $88.00 price objective for the company. Wolfe Research increased their price objective on Fastenal from $74.00 to $76.00 and gave the stock an “underweight” rating in a report on Thursday, January 16th. Stifel Nicolaus cut their target price on Fastenal from $86.00 to $82.00 and set a “hold” rating on the stock in a research note on Tuesday, January 21st. Finally, Hsbc Global Res cut Fastenal from a “hold” rating to a “moderate sell” rating in a research note on Wednesday, December 11th. 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.com, the stock has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $76.91.

Fastenal Trading Down 0.2 %

Shares of NASDAQ:FAST opened at $74.60 on Wednesday. The stock’s 50-day simple moving average is $74.09 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $74.54. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.03, a quick ratio of 2.28 and a current ratio of 4.67. Fastenal has a 52-week low of $61.36 and a 52-week high of $84.88. The stock has a market capitalization of $42.78 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 37.11, a PEG ratio of 3.58 and a beta of 1.02.

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

Fastenal Increases Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, February 28th. Investors of record on Friday, January 31st will be paid a dividend of $0.43 per share. This represents a $1.72 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.31%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, January 31st. This is an increase from Fastenal’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.39. Fastenal’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 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.