Rep. Josh Gottheimer Sells Off Shares of Fastenal (NASDAQ:FAST)

Representative Josh Gottheimer (D-New Jersey) recently sold shares of Fastenal (NASDAQ:FAST). In a filing disclosed on May 14th, the Representative disclosed that they had sold between $1,001 and $15,000 in Fastenal stock on April 9th. The trade occurred in the Representative’s “MORGAN STANLEY – SELECT UMA ACCOUNT # 1” account.

Representative Josh Gottheimer also recently made the following trade(s):

• Purchased $1,001 – $15,000 in shares of RTX (NYSE:RTX) on 4/23/2025.
• Purchased $1,001 – $15,000 in shares of Cheniere Energy (NYSE:LNG) on 4/22/2025.
• Purchased $1,001 – $15,000 in shares of Techtronic Industries (OTCMKTS:TTNDY) on 4/21/2025.
• Purchased $1,001 – $15,000 in shares of Tri Pointe Homes (NYSE:TPH) on 4/21/2025.
• Purchased $1,001 – $15,000 in shares of Perusahaan Perseroan (Persero) PT Telekomunikasi Indonesia Tbk (NYSE:TLK) on 4/21/2025.
• Sold $1,001 – $15,000 in shares of KKR & Co. Inc. (NYSE:KKR) on 4/21/2025.
• Purchased $1,001 – $15,000 in shares of D.R. Horton (NYSE:DHI) on 4/21/2025.
• Purchased $1,001 – $15,000 in shares of Home Depot (NYSE:HD) on 4/21/2025.
• Sold $1,001 – $15,000 in shares of Hillman Solutions (NASDAQ:HLMN) on 4/17/2025.
• Sold $1,001 – $15,000 in shares of AbbVie (NYSE:ABBV) on 4/17/2025.

Fastenal Stock Performance

Shares of FAST opened at $81.88 on Friday. The firm has a 50-day moving average of $78.22 and a 200-day moving average of $77.42. Fastenal has a one year low of $61.36 and a one year high of $84.88. The company has a market cap of $46.97 billion, a PE ratio of 40.74, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 3.58 and a beta of 1.01. 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’s stock is set to split on the morning of Thursday, May 22nd. The 2-1 split was announced on Wednesday, April 23rd. The newly issued shares will be issued to shareholders after the market closes on Wednesday, May 21st.

Fastenal (NASDAQ:FAST) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Friday, April 11th. The company reported $0.52 EPS for the quarter, meeting analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.52. Fastenal had a net margin of 15.25% and a return on equity of 32.55%. The company had revenue of $1.96 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $1.94 billion. During the same quarter last year, the firm posted $0.52 EPS. The company’s quarterly revenue was up 3.4% on a year-over-year basis. As a group, equities analysts forecast that Fastenal will post 2.15 earnings per share for the current year.

Fastenal Increases Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, May 23rd. Stockholders of record on Friday, April 25th will be given a $0.44 dividend. This represents a $1.76 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 2.15%. The ex-dividend date is Friday, April 25th. This is an increase from Fastenal’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.43. Fastenal’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 87.56%.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Fastenal

Hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently made changes to their positions in the company. Alliancebernstein L.P. increased its position in Fastenal by 1.3% during the 1st quarter. Alliancebernstein L.P. now owns 607,120 shares of the company’s stock worth $47,082,000 after purchasing an additional 7,989 shares in the last quarter. Amundi increased its position in Fastenal by 16.3% during the 1st quarter. Amundi now owns 2,247,162 shares of the company’s stock worth $174,955,000 after purchasing an additional 315,660 shares in the last quarter. Rench Wealth Management Inc. increased its position in Fastenal by 1.7% during the 1st quarter. Rench Wealth Management Inc. now owns 81,464 shares of the company’s stock worth $6,317,000 after purchasing an additional 1,384 shares in the last quarter. Federation des caisses Desjardins du Quebec increased its position in Fastenal by 77.5% during the 1st quarter. Federation des caisses Desjardins du Quebec now owns 42,328 shares of the company’s stock worth $3,284,000 after purchasing an additional 18,482 shares in the last quarter. Finally, First Manhattan CO. LLC. acquired a new position in Fastenal during the 1st quarter worth approximately $699,000. 81.38% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other Fastenal news, EVP Anthony Paul Broersma sold 5,568 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, April 25th. The shares were sold at an average price of $81.19, for a total transaction of $452,065.92. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. Also, Director Scott Satterlee sold 9,670 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, May 6th. The stock was sold at an average price of $79.51, for a total transaction of $768,861.70. Following the sale, the director now directly owns 25,000 shares in the company, valued at $1,987,750. The trade was a 27.89% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold a total of 80,238 shares of company stock worth $6,546,578 in the last three months. 0.37% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several analysts recently commented on the stock. Stephens lifted their target price on shares of Fastenal from $75.00 to $80.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a report on Tuesday, April 15th. Wolfe Research raised shares of Fastenal from an “underperform” rating to a “peer perform” rating in a report on Thursday, April 3rd. William Blair raised shares of Fastenal from a “market perform” rating to an “outperform” rating in a report on Monday, March 10th. Stifel Nicolaus reduced their target price on shares of Fastenal from $86.00 to $82.00 and set a “hold” rating for the company in a report on Tuesday, January 21st. Finally, Robert W. Baird lifted their target price on shares of Fastenal from $80.00 to $86.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a report on Monday, April 14th. One analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, eight have issued a hold rating and two have issued a buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, Fastenal presently has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $79.10.

About Representative Gottheimer

Josh Gottheimer (Democratic Party) is a member of the U.S. House, representing New Jersey’s 5th Congressional District. He assumed office on January 3, 2017. His current term ends on January 3, 2027.

Gottheimer (Democratic Party) is running for re-election to the U.S. House to represent New Jersey’s 5th Congressional District. He declared candidacy for the 2026 election.

Gottheimer is also running for election for Governor of New Jersey. He declared candidacy for the Democratic primary scheduled on June 10, 2025.

Gottheimer attended the University of Pennsylvania for his undergraduate degree. He became a Thouron Fellow at Oxford and attended Harvard Law School. Gottheimer worked as a speech writer under former President Bill Clinton (D), assisting with two State of the Union addresses, among other projects. Before running for Congress, he worked for Microsoft as a general manager for corporate strategy.

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.