# Fastenal Company (FAST)

> Source: Nexqual · https://nexqual.com/FAST · data as of 2026-10-22 20:00 UTC · cite as "Nexqual, Fastenal Company (FAST), nexqual.com/FAST" · informational, not investment advice.

**Price:** USD 52.73 (+0.46% on the day) · last close of Oct 22, 2026; US market pre market, not a live price. Prev close 52.49 · day 50.95–52.78 · 52w 38.97–52.92 · market cap $60.5B · NMS

## Key facts
- Last four reported quarters (through Sep 30, 2026): revenue $9.08B, net income $1.42B (15.6% margin), free cash flow $1.18B (SEC filings).
- Valuation: P/E 42.7x (avg 34.9x at the last 3 fiscal year-ends), EV/EBITDA 29.6x, net cash $112M.
- 2 of 80 tracked superinvestors hold FAST (13F, Q2 2026): 0 new, 0 added, 2 reduced, 0 unchanged.
- Insider open-market sales, last ~7 months: 4 Form 4 filings, $2.5M; 4 not under a Rule 10b5-1 plan ($2.5M); 0 by opportunistic insiders, 0 by routine insiders (three-year test, Cohen, Malloy & Pomorski 2012).
- Total return with dividends: 1Y +25.3% vs S&P 500 +14.9%; 5Y +112.2% vs S&P 500 +80.3%.
- Next earnings: 2026-10-14, EPS estimate USD 0.3, revenue estimate $2.33B.

## Financials (SEC 10-K; TTM = last four 10-Q/10-K quarters)
| USD | FY2021 | FY2022 | FY2023 | FY2024 | FY2025 | TTM |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Revenue | $6.01B | $6.98B | $7.35B | $7.55B | $8.20B | $9.08B |
| Gross profit | $2.78B | $3.22B | $3.35B | $3.40B | $3.69B | — |
| Operating income | $1.22B | $1.45B | $1.53B | $1.51B | $1.66B | $1.86B |
| Net income | $925M | $1.09B | $1.16B | $1.15B | $1.26B | $1.42B |
| EPS (diluted) | $0.80 | $0.94 | $1.01 | $1.00 | $1.09 | — |
| Free cash flow | $614M | $767M | $1.26B | $947M | $1.05B | $1.18B |
| Gross margin | 46.2% | 46.1% | 45.7% | 45.1% | 45.0% | — |
| Operating margin | 20.3% | 20.8% | 20.8% | 20.0% | 20.2% | 20.5% |
| Net margin | 15.4% | 15.6% | 15.7% | 15.2% | 15.3% | 15.6% |
| Revenue growth | +6.4% | +16.1% | +5.2% | +2.7% | +8.7% | — |
| Cash + short-term investments | $236M | $230M | $221M | $256M | $277M | — |
| Total debt | $390M | $555M | $260M | $200M | $125M | — |
Fiscal years end Dec. EPS is split-adjusted.

## Valuation (price ÷ last four quarters, through Sep 30, 2026)
P/E 42.7x · P/S 6.7x · EV/EBITDA 29.6x · EV/Sales 6.7x · P/FCF 51.4x · P/B 14.6x · FCF yield 1.94% · Earnings yield 2.34% · Dividend yield (paid, TTM) 1.82% · Net cash $112M · EV $60.4B
P/E at fiscal year-ends: Dec 2025 36.7x, Dec 2024 35.9x, Dec 2023 32.1x.

## Superinvestors (SEC 13F-HR, Q2 2026)
2 of 80 tracked investors hold FAST. Each row is the investor's latest 13F; change is vs their prior-quarter share count.
| Investor | Firm | % of portfolio | Value | Change |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| William Von Mueffling | Cantillon Capital Management | 2.72% | $18.1M | Reduced -95.4% |
| Mairs & Power | Mairs & Power Funds | 1.71% | $186M | Reduced -1.3% |

## Insider sales (SEC Form 4, open-market, last ~7 months)
0 of 4 under a Rule 10b5-1 trading plan (scheduled in advance). Unplanned sales were timed by the insider.
| Trade date | Insider | Role | Shares | Value | % of holdings sold | 10b5-1 plan | Insider type |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2026-08-13 | Papenfuss Donnalee Kathleen | EVP-Strategy and Communication | 9,258 | $476K | 91.9% | No | Too little history (no open-market trades in 2023) |
| 2026-08-10 | Ancius Michael J | Director | 3,000 | $156K | 4% | No | Too little history (no open-market trades in 2024 or 2025) |
| 2026-08-05 | Heise Rita J. | Director | 34,964 | $1.8M | 63.6% | No | Too little history (no open-market trades in 2023 or 2025) |
| 2026-07-28 | Ancius Michael J | Director | 3,000 | $147K | 4% | No | Too little history (no open-market trades in 2024 or 2025) |
% of holdings sold = shares sold ÷ (shares sold + all holdings the insider reported on that Form 4, direct and through trusts).
Insider type follows Cohen, Malloy & Pomorski (Journal of Finance, 2012). An insider who traded the stock in the same calendar month in each of the past three years is a routine trader; one who traded in each of those years without such a pattern is an opportunistic trader. In their study, trades by opportunistic insiders predicted future returns and trades by routine insiders did not. Counts open-market purchases and sales only (SEC Form 4 codes P and S) by that insider in that company. Not investment advice.

## Analysts
Rating changes, last 120 days:
| Date | Firm | Action | Rating | Price target |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2026-10-21 | Argus Research | Target raised | Buy | $55 → $59 |
| 2026-10-15 | DA Davidson | Maintained | Neutral | $51 |
| 2026-10-15 | Bernstein | Target raised | Underperform | $42 → $47 |
| 2026-10-15 | Baird | Target raised | Outperform | $59 → $60 |
| 2026-07-16 | Morgan Stanley | Target raised | Equal-Weight | $48 → $52 |
| 2026-07-16 | Barclays | Target lowered | Equal-Weight | $47 → $46 |
| 2026-07-15 | DA Davidson | Maintained | Neutral | $46 |
| 2026-07-13 | Rothschild & Co | Initiated | Buy | $55 |
| 2026-07-08 | Morgan Stanley | Target raised | Equal-Weight | $45 → $48 |
| 2026-07-06 | Barclays | Target raised | Equal-Weight | $46 → $47 |

## Total return (dividends reinvested)
|  | 1Y (from 2025-10-23) | 5Y (from 2021-10-18) |
|---|---|---|
| Total return | +25.3% | +112.2% |
| S&P 500 (SPY) | +14.9% | +80.3% |
| Per year | +25.4% | +16.2% |
| Volatility (annualized) | 24.3% | 23.9% |
| Max drawdown | -11.6% (Apr 2026→May 2026) | -30.4% (Dec 2021→Oct 2022) |

## Peers (Industrial Distribution)
GWW (W.W. Grainger, Inc.) USD 1,360.08 +0.61% · FERG (Ferguson Enterprises Inc.) USD 227.31 -0.29% · WCC (WESCO International, Inc.) USD 323.68 -7.23% · WSO (Watsco, Inc.) USD 327.04 +7.22% · AIT (Applied Industrial Technologies) USD 319.4 -5.75% · QXO (QXO, Inc.) USD 11.02 +6.89%

## More
Full page: https://nexqual.com/FAST · Free keyless MCP server with the same data and citations: https://mcp.nexqual.com/mcp · Guide for agents: https://nexqual.com/agents · https://nexqual.com/llms.txt

## Revenue by region (quarter ended 2026-09-30)

| Line | Revenue | Share | YoY |
|---|---|---|---|
| United States | $2.04B | 82.6% | +14.5% |
| Canada and Mexico | $342.1M | 13.9% | +20.1% |
| All other foreign countries | $86.1M | 3.5% | +22.0% |
| Total revenue | $2.46B | 100% | — |

## Company outlook (8-K filed 2026-10-14)

- "For 2026, we continue to expect our investment in property and equipment, net of proceeds from sales, to be between $310.0 and $330.0, an increase from $230.6 in 2025."
- "Second, we expect elevated IT spending as projects that were expected in 2025 experienced delays and are expected to continue throughout 2026."
- "We expect to publish the consolidated net sales information for each month, other than the third month of a quarter, at 6:00 a.m., central time, on the fourth business day of the following month."
- "We expect to publish the consolidated net sales information for the third month of each quarter and the conference call presentation for each quarter at 6:00 a.m., central time, on the date our earnings announcement for such quarter is publicly released."

## Analyst estimates and revisions

| Period | EPS est. | 90d ago | Change | Revenue est. | Analysts |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Current quarter (ends 2026-12-31) | $0.30 | $0.30 | +1.3% | $2.33B | 11 |
| Next quarter (ends 2027-03-31) | $0.34 | $0.33 | +1.5% | $2.48B | 8 |
| Current fiscal year (ends 2026-12-31) | $1.27 | $1.26 | +1.0% | $9.32B | 14 |
| Next fiscal year (ends 2027-12-31) | $1.40 | $1.39 | +0.8% | $10.21B | 14 |

## Options: expected move (Cboe, 15-min delayed)

| Expiration | Days | ATM IV | Expected move |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2026-11-20 | 28 | 26.0% | ±6.0% |
| 2026-12-18 | 56 | 19.7% | ±6.2% |
| 2027-01-15 | 84 | 25.3% | ±9.7% |
| 2027-02-19 | 119 | 26.5% | ±12.0% |
| 2027-03-19 | 147 | 23.3% | ±11.7% |
| 2027-05-21 | 210 | 26.8% | ±16.0% |
| 2027-06-17 | 237 | 26.1% | ±16.5% |
| 2027-09-17 | 329 | 24.9% | ±18.5% |