Praxis Investment Management Inc. Buys 5,670 Shares of Fastenal Company $FAST

Praxis Investment Management Inc. increased its stake in shares of Fastenal Company (NASDAQ:FAST) by 73.7% in the 2nd quarter, HoldingsChannel.com reports. The institutional investor owned 13,360 shares of the company’s stock after acquiring an additional 5,670 shares during the quarter. Praxis Investment Management Inc.’s holdings in Fastenal were worth $561,000 as of its most recent filing with the SEC.

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also modified their holdings of FAST. Riverview Trust Co boosted its holdings in shares of Fastenal by 100.0% during the 2nd quarter. Riverview Trust Co now owns 584 shares of the company’s stock worth $25,000 after buying an additional 292 shares during the period. Hilltop National Bank bought a new stake in shares of Fastenal during the 2nd quarter worth about $27,000. Armstrong Advisory Group Inc. boosted its holdings in Fastenal by 100.0% in the 2nd quarter. Armstrong Advisory Group Inc. now owns 696 shares of the company’s stock valued at $29,000 after purchasing an additional 348 shares during the period. AdvisorNet Financial Inc boosted its holdings in Fastenal by 95.0% in the 2nd quarter. AdvisorNet Financial Inc now owns 702 shares of the company’s stock valued at $29,000 after purchasing an additional 342 shares during the period. Finally, Clean Yield Group boosted its holdings in Fastenal by 100.0% in the 2nd quarter. Clean Yield Group now owns 696 shares of the company’s stock valued at $29,000 after purchasing an additional 348 shares during the period. Institutional investors own 81.38% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of analysts have issued reports on the stock. Baird R W raised shares of Fastenal from a “hold” rating to a “strong-buy” rating in a report on Thursday, August 7th. Robert W. Baird cut their price objective on shares of Fastenal from $53.00 to $49.00 and set an “outperform” rating for the company in a report on Tuesday. Stifel Nicolaus set a $82.00 price objective on shares of Fastenal in a report on Thursday, July 3rd. Morgan Stanley set a $40.00 price objective on shares of Fastenal and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a report on Thursday, July 3rd. Finally, Northcoast Research assumed coverage on shares of Fastenal in a report on Thursday, August 21st. They issued a “neutral” rating for the company. One research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, four have assigned a Buy rating, nine have assigned a Hold rating and one has given a Sell rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, Fastenal presently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $46.50.

Insider Activity at Fastenal

In related news, Director Hsenghung Sam Hsu acquired 1,000 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, October 16th. The stock was acquired at an average cost of $42.45 per share, for a total transaction of $42,450.00. Following the transaction, the director directly owned 9,000 shares in the company, valued at $382,050. This trade represents a 12.50% increase in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this hyperlink. Also, EVP William Joseph Drazkowski sold 6,842 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, August 15th. The stock was sold at an average price of $48.67, for a total transaction of $333,000.14. Following the transaction, the executive vice president owned 11,994 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $583,747.98. This represents a 36.32% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold 90,178 shares of company stock valued at $4,336,603 in the last quarter. 0.37% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

Fastenal Price Performance

Shares of NASDAQ:FAST opened at $42.46 on Friday. The firm has a 50 day moving average of $47.83 and a 200-day moving average of $44.00. The stock has a market capitalization of $48.73 billion, a PE ratio of 39.68, a PEG ratio of 3.83 and a beta of 0.94. The company has a current ratio of 4.26, a quick ratio of 2.12 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.03. Fastenal Company has a 12 month low of $35.31 and a 12 month high of $50.63.

Fastenal (NASDAQ:FAST) last issued its earnings results on Monday, October 13th. The company reported $0.29 EPS for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $0.30 by ($0.01). The firm had revenue of $2.13 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $2.13 billion. Fastenal had a net margin of 15.34% and a return on equity of 32.69%. Fastenal’s quarterly revenue was up 11.7% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the previous year, the firm posted $0.26 earnings per share. On average, equities research analysts predict that Fastenal Company will post 2.15 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Fastenal Announces Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, November 25th. Stockholders of record on Tuesday, October 28th will be given a $0.22 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Tuesday, October 28th. This represents a $0.88 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 2.1%. Fastenal’s payout ratio is presently 82.24%.

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.