TrueMark Investments LLC Buys Shares of 41,182 Fastenal Company $FAST

TrueMark Investments LLC purchased a new position in Fastenal Company (NASDAQ:FAST) during the third quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the SEC. The fund purchased 41,182 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $2,020,000.

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors also recently made changes to their positions in FAST. Patton Fund Management Inc. purchased a new position in Fastenal in the 2nd quarter worth approximately $229,000. Values First Advisors Inc. lifted its holdings in shares of Fastenal by 183.0% in the second quarter. Values First Advisors Inc. now owns 9,378 shares of the company’s stock worth $394,000 after buying an additional 6,064 shares in the last quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. boosted its position in shares of Fastenal by 103.5% during the second quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 149,169,494 shares of the company’s stock worth $6,265,119,000 after acquiring an additional 75,852,223 shares during the last quarter. Nordea Investment Management AB boosted its position in shares of Fastenal by 6.3% during the third quarter. Nordea Investment Management AB now owns 3,713,469 shares of the company’s stock worth $181,626,000 after acquiring an additional 219,154 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Optas LLC grew its stake in Fastenal by 100.2% during the second quarter. Optas LLC now owns 13,712 shares of the company’s stock valued at $576,000 after acquiring an additional 6,863 shares in the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 81.38% of the company’s stock.

Insider Buying and Selling at Fastenal

In other news, Director Sarah N. Nielsen purchased 1,000 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, November 19th. The stock was purchased at an average cost of $39.60 per share, with a total value of $39,600.00. Following the purchase, the director owned 5,000 shares in the company, valued at approximately $198,000. This trade represents a 25.00% increase in their ownership of the stock. The purchase was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this hyperlink. Also, Director Hsenghung Sam Hsu purchased 1,000 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, November 13th. The shares were purchased at an average price of $49.58 per share, for a total transaction of $49,580.00. Following the completion of the acquisition, the director directly owned 10,000 shares in the company, valued at $495,800. The trade was a 11.11% increase in their position. The SEC filing for this purchase provides additional information. 0.37% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Analyst Ratings Changes

FAST has been the topic of several research analyst reports. UBS Group reiterated a “neutral” rating and issued a $46.00 price target on shares of Fastenal in a research note on Wednesday. Jefferies Financial Group set a $52.00 target price on Fastenal and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Monday, December 15th. Sanford C. Bernstein reiterated an “underperform” rating on shares of Fastenal in a research report on Wednesday. Wolfe Research dropped their price target on Fastenal from $43.00 to $42.00 and set an “underperform” rating for the company in a research note on Wednesday. Finally, Weiss Ratings reaffirmed a “buy (b-)” rating on shares of Fastenal in a research note on Monday, December 29th. Four research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, seven have assigned a Hold rating and two have issued a Sell rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $48.00.

Fastenal Stock Down 2.0%

Shares of NASDAQ:FAST opened at $43.89 on Friday. The company has a market cap of $50.39 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 39.90, a PEG ratio of 2.87 and a beta of 0.90. Fastenal Company has a 12 month low of $35.31 and a 12 month high of $50.63. The company has a current ratio of 4.85, a quick ratio of 2.19 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.03. The company has a 50-day moving average price of $41.47 and a 200 day moving average price of $44.44.

Fastenal (NASDAQ:FAST) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, January 20th. The company reported $0.26 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, meeting analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.26. The business had revenue of $2.03 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $2.04 billion. Fastenal had a return on equity of 32.83% and a net margin of 15.35%.The company’s quarterly revenue was up 11.1% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the prior year, the business posted $0.46 earnings per share. As a group, equities research analysts predict that Fastenal Company will post 2.15 earnings per share for the current year.

Fastenal Increases Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, February 26th. Investors of record on Thursday, January 29th will be given a $0.24 dividend. This is a boost from Fastenal’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.22. This represents a $0.96 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 2.2%. The ex-dividend date is Thursday, January 29th. Fastenal’s dividend payout ratio is 82.24%.

About Fastenal

Fastenal (NASDAQ: FAST) is a wholesale distributor of industrial and construction supplies, best known for its broad assortment of fasteners such as bolts, nuts, screws and anchors. Founded in Winona, Minnesota, Fastenal has grown from a regional supplier into a national and international distributor serving a wide range of end markets, including manufacturing, construction, maintenance, repair and operations (MRO), and government customers. The company is publicly traded and operates through a network of locally staffed branches combined with national distribution capabilities.

Product offerings extend beyond fasteners to include tools, safety and personal protective equipment, power transmission components, cutting and welding supplies, janitorial and material handling items, and other industrial consumables.