Fastenal (FAST) Rises Yet Lags Behind Market: Some Facts Worth Knowing
In the latest trading session, Fastenal (FAST) closed at $64.69, marking a +0.09% move from the previous day. The stock fell short of the S&P 500, which registered a gain of 0.59% for the day. On the other hand, the Dow registered a gain of 0.68%, and the technology-centric Nasdaq increased by 0.66%.
Shares of the maker of industrial and construction fasteners have appreciated by 6.09% over the course of the past month, outperforming the Retail-Wholesale sector's gain of 4.97% and the S&P 500's gain of 5.16%.
Investors will be eagerly watching for the performance of Fastenal in its upcoming earnings disclosure. The company's earnings report is set to be unveiled on January 18, 2024. The company's upcoming EPS is projected at $0.45, signifying a 4.65% increase compared to the same quarter of the previous year. Alongside, our most recent consensus estimate is anticipating revenue of $1.75 billion, indicating a 3.12% upward movement from the same quarter last year.
Looking at the full year, the Zacks Consensus Estimates suggest analysts are expecting earnings of $2 per share and revenue of $7.34 billion. These totals would mark changes of +5.82% and +5.1%, respectively, from last year.
Any recent changes to analyst estimates for Fastenal should also be noted by investors. These recent revisions tend to reflect the evolving nature of short-term business trends. As such, positive estimate revisions reflect analyst optimism about the company's business and profitability.
Based on our research, we believe these estimate revisions are directly related to near-team stock moves. To capitalize on this, we've crafted the Zacks Rank, a unique model that incorporates these estimate changes and offers a practical rating system.
The Zacks Rank system, ranging from #1 (Strong Buy) to #5 (Strong Sell), possesses a remarkable history of outdoing, externally audited, with #1 stocks returning an average annual gain of +25% since 1988. The Zacks Consensus EPS estimate remained stagnant within the past month. At present, Fastenal boasts a Zacks Rank of #3 (Hold).
Looking at its valuation, Fastenal is holding a Forward P/E ratio of 32.24. This signifies a premium in comparison to the average Forward P/E of 11.59 for its industry.
One should further note that FAST currently holds a PEG ratio of 3.58. Comparable to the widely accepted P/E ratio, the PEG ratio also accounts for the company's projected earnings growth. As of the close of trade yesterday, the Building Products - Retail industry held an average PEG ratio of 2.1.
The Building Products - Retail industry is part of the Retail-Wholesale sector. This industry currently has a Zacks Industry Rank of 92, which puts it in the top 37% of all 250+ industries.
The Zacks Industry Rank assesses the vigor of our specific industry groups by computing the average Zacks Rank of the individual stocks incorporated in the groups. Our research shows that the top 50% rated industries outperform the bottom half by a factor of 2 to 1.
Don't forget to use Zacks.com to keep track of all these stock-moving metrics, and others, in the upcoming trading sessions.
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Fastenal Company (FAST) : Free Stock Analysis Report
