Fastenal (NASDAQ:FAST) Shares Gap Down – What’s Next?

Posted by George Bondi on Oct 16th, 2026

Fastenal Company (NASDAQ:FAST – Get Free Report)’s share price gapped down before the market opened on Wednesday. The stock had previously closed at $51.43, but opened at $47.51. Fastenal shares last traded at $49.8840, with a volume of 2,614,677 shares.

More Fastenal News

Here are the key news stories impacting Fastenal this week:

Positive Sentiment: Fastenal reported third-quarter revenue of $2.46 billion, up 15.5% year over year, while diluted EPS increased to $0.35 from $0.29 and exceeded the $0.34 consensus estimate. Operating margin improved to 21.5% as higher volumes helped leverage selling and administrative expenses. Fastenal Company Reports 2026 Third Quarter Earnings
Positive Sentiment: Growth with larger customers, manufacturing demand, Onsite services and digital supply-chain solutions supported the quarter. Some analysts raised their forecasts, including Robert W. Baird, which lifted its price target to $60 and maintained an Outperform rating. Analysts Boost Forecasts After Q3 Results
Positive Sentiment: The company declared a quarterly dividend of $0.26 per share, or $1.04 annualized, reinforcing its shareholder-return appeal. Fastenal Announces Fourth-Quarter Dividend
Neutral Sentiment: Analyst opinion remains divided. DA Davidson retained a Neutral rating after cutting estimates, while other analysts increased price targets. The mixed outlook is notable given Fastenal’s elevated valuation.
Negative Sentiment: September sales growth reportedly fell short of expectations, tempering enthusiasm over the headline quarterly beat. Fastenal also reduced its 2026 target for weighted FASTBin and FASTVend signings to 27,000–29,000 from 28,000–30,000, signaling somewhat softer expansion expectations. Fastenal Analyst Cuts Estimates After Q3 Results
Negative Sentiment: Gross margin contracted to 44.8% from 45.3%, partly because larger customers generate lower margins even when they contribute more profit dollars. Investors are also weighing heavier spending needs and the stock’s premium earnings multiple. Fastenal Q3: The Math Behind My Sell Rating

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

FAST has been the subject of a number of recent research reports. DA Davidson set a $51.00 price target on shares of Fastenal and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research note on Tuesday. Rothschild & Co Redburn set a $55.00 price target on shares of Fastenal and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Monday, July 13th. Sanford C. Bernstein restated an “underperform” rating and set a $47.00 price target (up from $42.00) on shares of Fastenal in a research report on Thursday. Wolfe Research started coverage on shares of Fastenal in a research note on Tuesday, September 15th. They set an “underperform” rating and a $51.00 price objective for the company. Finally, Weiss Ratings upgraded shares of Fastenal from a “buy (b-)” rating to a “buy (b)” rating in a report on Thursday, October 8th. Six research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, five have assigned a Hold rating and two have given a Sell rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, Fastenal presently has an average rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $50.83.

Get Our Latest Stock Analysis on Fastenal

Fastenal Trading Down 3.1%

The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.01, a current ratio of 3.93 and a quick ratio of 2.21. The company has a market cap of $57.81 billion, a PE ratio of 40.63, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 3.22 and a beta of 0.69. The company’s 50 day simple moving average is $50.36 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $47.50.

Fastenal (NASDAQ:FAST – Get Free Report) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, October 14th. The company reported $0.35 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.34 by $0.01. The business had revenue of $2.46 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $2.44 billion. Fastenal had a net margin of 15.62% and a return on equity of 35.13%. The business’s revenue for the quarter was up 15.5% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period last year, the business earned $0.29 earnings per share. As a group, sell-side analysts anticipate that Fastenal Company will post 1.27 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Fastenal Announces Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, November 25th. Investors of record on Wednesday, October 28th will be given a dividend of $0.26 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Wednesday, October 28th. This represents a $1.04 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 2.1%. Fastenal’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 88.14%.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, Director Michael Ancius sold 3,000 shares of Fastenal stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, July 28th. The shares were sold at an average price of $49.00, for a total value of $147,000.00. Following the completion of the sale, the director owned 58,690 shares in the company, valued at approximately $2,875,810. This trade represents a 4.86% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this link. Also, Director Rita J. Heise sold 34,964 shares of Fastenal stock in a transaction that occurred 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 completion of the sale, the director owned 20,000 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $1,001,000. This trade represents a 63.61% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale is available in the SEC filing. Company insiders own 0.28% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Fastenal

A number of institutional investors have recently modified their holdings of FAST. BlackRock Inc. acquired a new position in Fastenal during the 2nd quarter worth about $5,105,454,000. State Street Corp boosted its holdings in Fastenal by 1.6% during the 2nd quarter. State Street Corp now owns 56,438,968 shares of the company’s stock valued at $2,710,764,000 after acquiring an additional 869,793 shares during the period. Bank of New York Mellon Corp purchased a new position in Fastenal during the 2nd quarter valued at about $859,310,000. Bank of America Corp DE grew its position in Fastenal by 12.0% in the 1st quarter. Bank of America Corp DE now owns 16,292,425 shares of the company’s stock valued at $755,969,000 after acquiring an additional 1,744,193 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Baird Financial Group Inc. grew its position in Fastenal by 1.2% in the 2nd quarter. Baird Financial Group Inc. now owns 15,561,007 shares of the company’s stock valued at $747,395,000 after acquiring an additional 183,238 shares in the last quarter. 81.38% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Fastenal Company Profile

(Get Free Report)

Fastenal Company is a distributor of industrial and construction supplies serving businesses, contractors, manufacturers and other organizations. Its product offerings include fasteners such as bolts, nuts and screws, as well as safety equipment, tools, cutting tools, material-handling products, electrical and plumbing supplies, and maintenance and repair items.

The company sells products through a network of branch locations, onsite customer facilities, industrial vending machines and digital platforms.