KCM Investment Advisors LLC Acquires 4,959 Shares of Fastenal Company $FAST

KCM Investment Advisors LLC increased its holdings in shares of Fastenal Company (NASDAQ:FAST) by 102.1% during the 2nd quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor owned 9,818 shares of the company’s stock after acquiring an additional 4,959 shares during the period. KCM Investment Advisors LLC’s holdings in Fastenal were worth $412,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also bought and sold shares of the company. Brighton Jones LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Fastenal in the 4th quarter worth approximately $496,000. Allworth Financial LP raised its stake in Fastenal by 6.4% during the first quarter. Allworth Financial LP now owns 6,966 shares of the company’s stock valued at $572,000 after buying an additional 416 shares during the last quarter. Cerity Partners LLC raised its stake in Fastenal by 5.4% during the first quarter. Cerity Partners LLC now owns 203,791 shares of the company’s stock valued at $15,804,000 after buying an additional 10,531 shares during the last quarter. Ballentine Partners LLC boosted its holdings in Fastenal by 4.7% in the first quarter. Ballentine Partners LLC now owns 11,327 shares of the company’s stock worth $878,000 after acquiring an additional 505 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Kathmere Capital Management LLC grew its stake in shares of Fastenal by 9.7% in the first quarter. Kathmere Capital Management LLC now owns 10,994 shares of the company’s stock worth $853,000 after acquiring an additional 969 shares during 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 Fastenal news, EVP William Joseph Drazkowski sold 6,842 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Friday, August 15th. The stock was sold at an average price of $48.67, for a total value 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 transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Also, Director Hsenghung Sam Hsu bought 1,000 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Thursday, October 16th. The stock was purchased at an average cost of $42.45 per share, for a total transaction of $42,450.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the director directly owned 9,000 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $382,050. The trade was a 12.50% increase in their position. Additional details regarding this purchase are available in the official SEC disclosure. 0.37% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several equities analysts have recently issued reports on the company. Baird R W raised Fastenal from a “hold” rating to a “strong-buy” rating in a research report on Thursday, August 7th. Weiss Ratings restated a “buy (b)” rating on shares of Fastenal in a research note on Wednesday, October 8th. Stephens lifted their target price on shares of Fastenal from $40.00 to $45.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a report on Tuesday, July 15th. Northcoast Research initiated coverage on shares of Fastenal in a report on Thursday, August 21st. They set a “neutral” rating on the stock. Finally, 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. One analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, four have given a Buy rating, nine have assigned a Hold rating and one has given a Sell rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, Fastenal presently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $46.50.

Fastenal Price Performance

FAST opened at $40.85 on Monday. The company’s 50-day simple moving average is $45.57 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $44.41. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.03, a quick ratio of 2.19 and a current ratio of 4.26. The stock has a market capitalization of $46.90 billion, a P/E ratio of 38.18, a P/E/G ratio of 3.75 and a beta of 0.92. Fastenal Company has a 52-week low of $35.31 and a 52-week high of $50.63.

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

Fastenal Announces Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, November 25th. Shareholders of record on Tuesday, October 28th will be paid a dividend of $0.22 per share. The ex-dividend date is Tuesday, October 28th. This represents a $0.88 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 2.2%. Fastenal’s payout ratio is currently 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.