Apollon Wealth Management LLC Buys 1,085 Shares of Fastenal (NASDAQ:FAST)

Apollon Wealth Management LLC increased its stake in shares of Fastenal (NASDAQ:FAST) by 3.9% during the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the SEC. The fund owned 28,967 shares of the company’s stock after purchasing an additional 1,085 shares during the quarter. Apollon Wealth Management LLC’s holdings in Fastenal were worth $1,876,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other large investors have also recently modified their holdings of the stock. Essex Financial Services Inc. increased its position in Fastenal by 1.8% during the 4th quarter. Essex Financial Services Inc. now owns 8,539 shares of the company’s stock valued at $553,000 after buying an additional 148 shares in the last quarter. Hartford Financial Management Inc. increased its position in Fastenal by 46.9% during the 4th quarter. Hartford Financial Management Inc. now owns 479 shares of the company’s stock valued at $31,000 after buying an additional 153 shares in the last quarter. Empirical Asset Management LLC increased its holdings in shares of Fastenal by 2.4% in the fourth quarter. Empirical Asset Management LLC now owns 7,212 shares of the company’s stock valued at $467,000 after purchasing an additional 171 shares during the period. Berkshire Bank increased its holdings in shares of Fastenal by 3.1% in the third quarter. Berkshire Bank now owns 5,777 shares of the company’s stock valued at $316,000 after purchasing an additional 174 shares during the period. Finally, OmniStar Financial Group Inc. increased its holdings in shares of Fastenal by 1.1% in the third quarter. OmniStar Financial Group Inc. now owns 15,960 shares of the company’s stock valued at $873,000 after purchasing an additional 174 shares during the period. Institutional investors own 81.38% of the company’s stock.

Insider Activity at Fastenal

In other Fastenal news, insider Jeffery Michael Watts sold 19,420 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Tuesday, February 20th. The shares were sold at an average price of $70.25, for a total transaction of $1,364,255.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider now owns 5,940 shares in the company, valued at approximately $417,285. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this link. In other Fastenal news, Director Daniel L. Johnson acquired 3,350 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, April 17th. The shares were purchased at an average cost of $68.38 per share, with a total value of $229,073.00. Following the purchase, the director now owns 10,595 shares in the company, valued at $724,486.10. The purchase was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Also, insider Jeffery Michael Watts sold 19,420 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, February 20th. The stock was sold at an average price of $70.25, for a total transaction of $1,364,255.00. Following the sale, the insider now directly owns 5,940 shares in the company, valued at $417,285. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. 0.41% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Fastenal Stock Down 0.1 %

NASDAQ:FAST traded down $0.06 during midday trading on Wednesday, reaching $66.35. The company had a trading volume of 869,472 shares, compared to its average volume of 3,929,150. The firm has a market capitalization of $37.99 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 32.88, a PEG ratio of 3.58 and a beta of 1.07. The company has a current ratio of 4.83, a quick ratio of 2.49 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.06. The stock’s fifty day simple moving average is $72.87 and its 200-day simple moving average is $67.29. Fastenal has a 12-month low of $52.86 and a 12-month high of $79.04.

Fastenal (NASDAQ:FAST) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, April 11th. The company reported $0.52 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.53 by ($0.01). The business had revenue of $1.90 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $1.91 billion. Fastenal had a return on equity of 33.98% and a net margin of 15.68%. The firm’s quarterly revenue was up 1.9% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period last year, the firm earned $0.52 earnings per share. On average, sell-side analysts anticipate that Fastenal will post 2.12 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Fastenal Announces Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, May 23rd. Stockholders of record on Thursday, April 25th will be given a dividend of $0.39 per share. The ex-dividend date is Wednesday, April 24th. This represents a $1.56 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 2.35%. Fastenal’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 77.23%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of brokerages have recently weighed in on FAST. Robert W. Baird cut their price objective on Fastenal from $71.00 to $69.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a report on Tuesday. Stifel Nicolaus raised their target price on Fastenal from $75.00 to $85.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Monday, March 18th. HSBC raised their target price on Fastenal from $59.00 to $64.00 and gave the stock a “hold” rating in a report on Monday, April 15th. Finally, Loop Capital lowered their price target on Fastenal from $71.00 to $66.00 and set a “hold” rating on the stock in a research report on Monday, April 15th. Five investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and one has assigned a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the company currently has an average rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $67.33.

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.