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Shortfall Costs Fastenal

TSC and IRIS Staff

Fastenal(FAST Quote) dropped 8% Wednesday after missing Wall Street's second-quarter earnings target.

The Winona, Minn.-based company earned $51.5 million, or 34 cents a share, in the quarter, compared with $44.6 million, or 30 cents a share, a year ago. Analysts surveyed by Thomson First Call were expecting earnings of 36 cents a share in the most recent quarter.

Second-quarter revenue rose 19.7% to $458.8 million as against analysts' expectation of $458.7 million.

During the second quarter, vehicle fuel costs averaged about $2,096 a month, compared with about $1,500 a month in the second quarter of 2005.

Operating profit increased 15.4% to $82.8 million while operating margin fell 67 basis points to 18%.

Shares of Fastenal were down $3.13 to $35.42.