Fastenal (NASDAQ:FAST – Get Free Report) announced a quarterly dividend on Thursday, October 10th, RTT News reports. Shareholders of record on Friday, October 25th will be given a dividend of 0.39 per share on Friday, November 22nd. This represents a $1.56 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.23%.
Fastenal has raised its dividend payment by an average of 11.9% per year over the last three years and has increased its dividend every year for the last 25 years. Fastenal has a dividend payout ratio of 71.2% indicating that its dividend is sufficiently covered by earnings. Equities analysts expect Fastenal to earn $2.18 per share next year, which means the company should continue to be able to cover its $1.56 annual dividend with an expected future payout ratio of 71.6%.
Fastenal Price Performance
Shares of FAST stock traded down $0.62 during trading hours on Thursday, reaching $69.99. The stock had a trading volume of 3,868,712 shares, compared to its average volume of 3,339,331. Fastenal has a 12 month low of $55.42 and a 12 month high of $79.04. The company has a current ratio of 4.39, a quick ratio of 2.29 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.04. The firm has a market capitalization of $40.07 billion, a PE ratio of 34.95, a PEG ratio of 3.92 and a beta of 1.01. The stock’s fifty day simple moving average is $68.53 and its 200 day simple moving average is $68.00.
Fastenal (NASDAQ:FAST – Get Free Report) last announced its earnings results on Friday, July 12th. The company reported $0.51 earnings per share for the quarter, meeting analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.51. The business had revenue of $1.92 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $1.91 billion. Fastenal had a net margin of 15.54% and a return on equity of 33.54%. Fastenal’s quarterly revenue was up 1.8% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period last year, the firm posted $0.52 earnings per share. On average, equities research analysts predict that Fastenal will post 2.04 EPS for the current year.
Analyst Ratings Changes
A number of brokerages recently commented on FAST. Stifel Nicolaus restated a “buy” rating and issued a $80.00 price objective (down from $85.00) on shares of Fastenal in a report on Monday, July 15th. Bank of America started coverage on Fastenal in a research report on Monday. They set a “buy” rating and a $85.00 price target on the stock. Stephens reaffirmed an “equal weight” rating and issued a $56.00 price target on shares of Fastenal in a research note on Monday, July 15th. Jefferies Financial Group lowered their price objective on Fastenal from $74.00 to $65.00 and set a “hold” rating for the company in a research report on Thursday, July 11th. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. upped their target price on shares of Fastenal from $57.00 to $63.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research report on Thursday. Seven analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and two have assigned a buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the company currently has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $68.89.
Insider Activity at Fastenal
In other news, CEO Daniel L. Florness sold 45,744 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Wednesday, August 21st. The stock was sold at an average price of $68.14, for a total value of $3,116,996.16. Following the completion of the sale, the chief executive officer now directly owns 286,018 shares in the company, valued at $19,489,266.52. This represents a 0.00 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available at this link. In other news, CEO Daniel L. Florness sold 50,000 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Thursday, September 12th. The shares were sold at an average price of $69.68, for a total transaction of $3,484,000.00. Following the sale, the chief executive officer now directly owns 286,018 shares in the company, valued at $19,929,734.24. This trade represents a 0.00 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this hyperlink. Also, CEO Daniel L. Florness sold 45,744 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Wednesday, August 21st. The stock was sold at an average price of $68.14, for a total transaction of $3,116,996.16. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief executive officer now directly owns 286,018 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $19,489,266.52. This represents a 0.00 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. 0.41% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.
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.