Compass Capital Management Inc. Trims Position in Fastenal Company $FAST

Compass Capital Management Inc. trimmed its position in shares of Fastenal Company (NASDAQ:FAST) by 7.8% during the first quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 1,279,691 shares of the company’s stock after selling 107,960 shares during the quarter. Fastenal accounts for 3.5% of Compass Capital Management Inc.’s portfolio, making the stock its 8th largest position. Compass Capital Management Inc.’s holdings in Fastenal were worth $59,378,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently made changes to their positions in FAST. Groupe la Francaise increased its position in shares of Fastenal by 9.9% in the 1st quarter. Groupe la Francaise now owns 152,612 shares of the company’s stock valued at $7,081,000 after buying an additional 13,789 shares in the last quarter. SHUTTLEWORTH & Co raised its stake in Fastenal by 10.1% during the 1st quarter. SHUTTLEWORTH & Co now owns 27,571 shares of the company’s stock worth $1,279,000 after buying an additional 2,539 shares during the period. Bank of America Corp DE lifted its holdings in Fastenal by 12.0% during the first quarter. Bank of America Corp DE now owns 16,292,425 shares of the company’s stock worth $755,969,000 after acquiring an additional 1,744,193 shares in the last quarter. EverSource Wealth Advisors LLC lifted its holdings in Fastenal by 30.9% during the first quarter. EverSource Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 11,256 shares of the company’s stock worth $522,000 after acquiring an additional 2,655 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Empowered Funds LLC grew its stake in Fastenal by 8.1% in the first quarter. Empowered Funds LLC now owns 79,512 shares of the company’s stock valued at $3,689,000 after acquiring an additional 5,947 shares during the period. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 81.38% of the company’s stock.

Insider Activity at Fastenal

In other news, Director Michael J. Ancius sold 3,000 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, July 28th. The stock was sold at an average price of $49.00, for a total value of $147,000.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the director owned 58,690 shares in the company, valued at $2,875,810. This trade represents a 4.86% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at the SEC website. 0.28% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several equities research analysts have issued reports on FAST shares. Morgan Stanley increased their price target on Fastenal from $48.00 to $52.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a report on Thursday, July 16th. Bank of America lifted their price objective on Fastenal from $48.00 to $55.00 in a report on Monday, April 13th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. boosted their price objective on Fastenal from $46.00 to $47.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research report on Thursday, April 9th. Rothschild & Co Redburn set a $55.00 target price on Fastenal and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Monday, July 13th. Finally, Weiss Ratings downgraded shares of Fastenal from a “buy (b)” rating to a “buy (b-)” rating in a report on Tuesday, July 21st. Five research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, six have assigned a Hold rating and two have given a Sell rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat, the stock currently has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $48.83.

Fastenal Stock Performance

Shares of FAST stock opened at $47.71 on Friday. The company’s fifty day simple moving average is $46.31 and its 200-day simple moving average is $45.57. The company has a quick ratio of 2.21, a current ratio of 4.18 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.01. The firm has a market cap of $54.75 billion, a PE ratio of 40.43, a P/E/G ratio of 2.92 and a beta of 0.72. Fastenal Company has a 12 month low of $38.97 and a 12 month high of $50.63.

Fastenal (NASDAQ:FAST) last released its earnings results on Tuesday, July 14th. The company reported $0.33 earnings per share for the quarter, meeting analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.33. Fastenal had a net margin of 15.45% and a return on equity of 34.03%. The business had revenue of $2.39 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $2.34 billion. During the same quarter last year, the firm earned $0.29 earnings per share. The firm’s revenue for the quarter was up 14.7% compared to the same quarter last year. Equities research analysts expect that Fastenal Company will post 1.25 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Fastenal Increases Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, August 25th. Stockholders of record on Tuesday, July 28th will be paid a dividend of $0.26 per share. The ex-dividend date is Tuesday, July 28th. This represents a $1.04 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 2.2%. This is a positive change from Fastenal’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.24. Fastenal’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 88.14%.

Fastenal Profile

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.