290,411 Shares in Fastenal Company $FAST Bought by Regents Gate Capital LLP

Regents Gate Capital LLP bought a new position in Fastenal Company (NASDAQ:FAST) in the 2nd quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The fund bought 290,411 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $12,197,000. Fastenal makes up 4.3% of Regents Gate Capital LLP’s portfolio, making the stock its 3rd largest holding.

Several other institutional investors have also added to or reduced their stakes in the business. State of Michigan Retirement System boosted its position in Fastenal by 101.0% during the second quarter. State of Michigan Retirement System now owns 334,656 shares of the company’s stock valued at $14,056,000 after buying an additional 168,178 shares during the period. Carson Advisory Inc. boosted its position in Fastenal by 99.5% during the second quarter. Carson Advisory Inc. now owns 10,292 shares of the company’s stock valued at $432,000 after buying an additional 5,134 shares during the period. iA Global Asset Management Inc. boosted its position in Fastenal by 106.3% during the second quarter. iA Global Asset Management Inc. now owns 177,213 shares of the company’s stock valued at $7,443,000 after buying an additional 91,320 shares during the period. Nicholas Company Inc. boosted its position in Fastenal by 53.1% during the second quarter. Nicholas Company Inc. now owns 1,474,690 shares of the company’s stock valued at $61,937,000 after buying an additional 511,245 shares during the period. Finally, Mission Wealth Management LP boosted its position in Fastenal by 102.9% during the second quarter. Mission Wealth Management LP now owns 12,114 shares of the company’s stock valued at $509,000 after buying an additional 6,143 shares during the period. 81.38% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Insider Activity at Fastenal

In related news, Director Hsenghung Sam Hsu purchased 1,000 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, October 16th. The stock was bought at an average cost of $42.45 per share, with a total value of $42,450.00. Following the completion of the purchase, the director directly owned 9,000 shares in the company, valued at approximately $382,050. This represents a 12.50% increase in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available at this hyperlink. Also, insider Jeffery Michael Watts sold 48,724 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Friday, August 8th. The stock was sold at an average price of $48.05, for a total transaction of $2,341,188.20. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider directly owned 11,880 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $570,834. The trade was a 80.40% decrease in their ownership of the stock. Additional details regarding this sale are available in the official SEC disclosure. Insiders sold 90,178 shares of company stock valued at $4,336,603 in the last three months. Corporate insiders own 0.37% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several research firms have issued reports on FAST. Baird R W upgraded shares of Fastenal from a “hold” rating to a “strong-buy” rating in a research report on Thursday, August 7th. Barclays set a $45.00 price target on shares of Fastenal and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a research report on Tuesday, October 14th. Stephens upped their price objective on shares of Fastenal from $40.00 to $45.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a research note on Tuesday, July 15th. Robert W. Baird lowered their price objective on shares of Fastenal from $53.00 to $49.00 and set an “outperform” rating for the company in a research note on Tuesday, October 14th. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. upped their price objective on shares of Fastenal from $41.00 to $46.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research note on Thursday, September 4th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, four have assigned a Buy rating, nine have issued a Hold rating and one has given a Sell rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has an average rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $46.50.

Fastenal Stock Performance

Shares of NASDAQ:FAST opened at $41.15 on Friday. The company has a market cap of $47.24 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 38.46, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 3.75 and a beta of 0.94. The company has a 50-day moving average price of $46.47 and a 200-day moving average price of $44.36. The company has a current ratio of 4.26, a quick ratio of 2.19 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 quarterly earnings data on Monday, October 13th. The company reported $0.29 EPS for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $0.30 by ($0.01). Fastenal had a net margin of 15.34% and a return on equity of 32.69%. The firm had revenue of $2.13 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $2.13 billion. During the same period last year, the company posted $0.26 earnings per share. The business’s revenue was up 11.7% on a year-over-year basis. As a group, equities analysts anticipate that Fastenal Company will post 2.15 EPS for the current year.

Fastenal Announces Dividend

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

Fastenal Company 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.