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Exhibit 4.4
DESCRIPTION OF CAPITAL STOCK
The summary of the general terms and provisions of the capital stock of Fastenal Company (the "Company") set forth below does not purport to be complete and is subject to and qualified by reference to the Company's Restated Articles of Incorporation, as amended (the "Articles") and Restated By-Laws ("By-Laws," and together with the Articles, the "Charter Documents"), each of which is incorporated herein by reference and attached as an exhibit to the Company's most recent Annual Report on Form 10-K filed with the Securities and Exchange Commission. For additional information, please read the Company's Charter Documents and the applicable provisions of the Minnesota Business Corporation Act (the "MBCA").
Capital Stock
The Company is authorized to issue up to 805,000,000 shares, of which 5,000,000 have been designated preferred stock, par value of $0.01 per share ("Preferred Stock") and 800,000,000 have been designated common stock, par value $0.01 per share ("Common Stock").
Voting Rights
The holders of shares of Common Stock are entitled to one vote for each share held of record on all matters submitted to a vote of shareholders, including the election of directors. The Articles do not permit cumulative voting in the election of directors. Subject to the rights, if any, of the holders of one or more classes or series of Preferred Stock issued by the Company, each director of the Company shall be elected at a meeting of shareholders by the vote of the majority of votes cast with respect to that director, provided that directors of the Company shall be elected by a plurality of the votes present and entitled to vote on the election of directors at any such meeting for which the number of nominees (other than nominees withdrawn on or prior to the day preceding the date the Company first mails its notice for such meeting to the shareholders) exceeds the number of directors to be elected. Voting rights with respect to certain significant corporate transactions may require more than a majority vote in certain circumstances as described below under "Business Combinations and Other Transactions with 15% Shareholders."
Dividend Rights
Subject to any prior rights of any Preferred Stock then outstanding, the holders of shares of Common Stock are entitled to receive ratably such dividends as may be declared by the Company's board of directors out of funds legally available therefor. 
Liquidation Rights    
Upon any liquidation or dissolution of the Company, the holders of shares of Common Stock share ratably, in proportion to the number of shares held, in the assets available for distribution after payment of all prior claims, including all prior claims of any Preferred Stock then outstanding.
No Preemptive Rights
Shareholders of the Company shall have no preemptive rights to acquire securities or rights to purchase securities of the Company. 
Listing    
The Company's Common Stock is currently traded on the Nasdaq Stock Market LLC under the symbol "FAST."
Anti-Takeover Provisions
The Charter Documents and the MBCA contain certain provisions that may discourage an unsolicited takeover of the Company or make an unsolicited takeover of the Company more difficult. The following are some of the more significant anti-takeover provisions that are applicable to the Company:
Business Combinations and Other Transactions with 15% Shareholders
The Articles provide that, generally, (i) consolidations, mergers, statutory share exchanges and sales or other dispositions of 10% or more of the book value of the Company's assets involving a beneficial holder of at least 15% of the stock of the Company entitled to vote generally in the election of directors ("Voting Stock"), (ii) the acquisition of assets from a beneficial holder of at least 15% of the Company's Voting Stock equal to or greater than 10% of the book value of the Company's assets, (iii) certain issuances of stock involving a beneficial holder of at least 15% of the Company's Voting Stock, (iv) liquidations or dissolutions of the Company proposed by or on behalf of a 15% or more beneficial shareholder, and (v) certain other specified transactions involving a 15% or more beneficial shareholder, whether or not they otherwise require a shareholder vote, require the affirmative vote of the holders of at least 75% of the outstanding shares of the Company's Voting Stock, unless (a) the proposed transaction is first approved by a majority of the continuing directors (generally meaning any director whose election or nomination was approved by a majority of the currently sitting directors) whose election or nomination was approved by a majority of the continuing directors), or (b) the consideration to be received by the shareholders of the Company in the proposed transaction meets certain conditions generally designed to insure that shareholders receive a fair price for their shares, 

and certain other procedural requirements in connection with the proposed transaction are followed. A 75% vote of the outstanding shares of the Company's Voting Stock is required to amend this special voting provision. 
Special Meetings of Shareholders; Shareholder Action by Unanimous Written Consent; and Advance Notice of Shareholder Business Proposals and Nominations
Section 302A.433 of the MBCA provides that special meetings of the Company's shareholders may be called by the Company's chief executive officer, chief financial officer, two or more directors, or shareholders holding 10% or more of the voting power of all shares entitled to vote, except that a special meeting demanded by shareholders for the purpose of considering any action to directly or indirectly facilitate or effect a business combination, including any action to change or otherwise affect the composition of the board of directors for that purpose, must be called by 25% or more of the voting power of all shares entitled to vote. Section 302A.441 of the MBCA also provides that action may be taken by shareholders without a meeting only by unanimous written consent. The By-Laws provide an advance written notice procedure with respect to shareholder proposals of business and shareholder nominations of candidates for election as directors.  Shareholders at an annual meeting are able to consider only the proposals and nominations specified in the notice of meeting or otherwise brought before the meeting by or at the direction of the board of directors or by a shareholder that has delivered timely written notice in proper form to the Company's general counsel of the business to be brought before the meeting.
Control Share Provision
Section 302A.671 of the MBCA applies, with certain exceptions, to any acquisition of the Company's Voting Stock (from a person other than the Company and other than in connection with certain mergers and exchanges to which the Company is a party) resulting in the acquiring person owning 20% or more of the Company's Voting Stock then outstanding. Section 302A.671 requires approval of any such acquisitions by both (i) the affirmative vote of the holders of a majority of the shares entitled to vote, including shares held by the acquiring person, and (ii) the affirmative vote of the holders of a majority of the shares entitled to vote, excluding all interested shares. In general, shares acquired in the absence of such approval are denied voting rights and are redeemable at their then fair market value by the Company within 30 days after the acquiring person has failed to give a timely information statement to the Company or the date the shareholders voted not to grant voting rights to the acquiring person's shares. The control share provision applies to any corporation that has not expressly provided to the contrary in its articles or in its bylaws approved by its shareholders. The Articles provide that this provision shall apply.
Business Combination Provision
Section 302A.673 of the MBCA generally prohibits the Company or any of its subsidiaries from entering into any merger, share exchange, sale of material assets or similar transaction with a 10% shareholder within four years following the date the person became a 10% shareholder, unless either the transaction or the person's acquisition of shares is approved prior to the person becoming a 10% shareholder by a committee of all of the disinterested members of the board of directors.  The business combination provision applies to any corporation that has not expressly provided to the contrary in its articles or its bylaws. The Articles provide that this provision shall apply.
Takeover Offer; Fair Price    
Under Section 302A.675 of the MBCA, an offeror may not acquire shares of a publicly held corporation within two years following the last purchase of shares pursuant to a takeover offer with respect to that class, including acquisitions made by purchase, exchange, merger, consolidation, partial or complete liquidation, redemption, reverse stock split, recapitalization, reorganization, or any other similar transaction, unless (i) the acquisition is approved by a committee of the board's disinterested directors before the purchase of any shares by the offeror pursuant to the earlier takeover offer, or (ii) shareholders are afforded, at the time of the proposed acquisition, a reasonable opportunity to dispose of the shares to the offeror upon substantially equivalent terms as those provided in the earlier takeover offer.
Greenmail Restrictions   
Under Section 302A.553 of the MBCA, a corporation is prohibited from buying shares at an above-market price from a greater than 5% shareholder who has held the shares for less than two years unless (i) the purchase is approved by holders of a majority of the outstanding shares entitled to vote or (ii) the corporation makes an equal or better offer to all shareholders for all other shares of that class or series and any other class or series into which they may be converted.
Authority of the Board of Directors
The Company's board of directors has the power to issue any or all of the shares of the Company's capital stock, including the authority to establish one or more series of Preferred Stock, setting forth the designation of each such series and fixing the relative rights and preferences for each such series, without seeking shareholder approval in most instances.  In addition, under the By-Laws, the Company's board of directors has the right to fill vacancies of the board of directors (including a vacancy created by an increase in the size of the board of directors).Document

Exhibit 10.1
Fastenal Company
Bonus Program for Executive Officers
Quarterly Incentives
Our executive officers are eligible for cash incentives through individual bonus arrangements based on improvements in the overall financial performance of the company and/or their respective areas of responsibility. The bonus arrangements provide our executive officers with the opportunity to earn a cash bonus for each quarter during a year when we increase our earnings above a predetermined minimum target. 
The primary cash bonuses for all of our named executive officers other than our chief financial officer are based on growth in pre-tax earnings of the company and/or the officer's area of responsibility. The compensation committee selected pre-tax earnings as the appropriate metric for calculating cash bonuses for those officers because of the committee's belief that the focus of the named executive officers should be on profitability, which is the primary driver of shareholder value. The primary cash bonuses for our chief financial officer are based on growth in company-wide net earnings because his responsibilities allow him to affect our entire financial position including our tax position. The compensation committee believes that no named executive officer should earn a cash bonus under this program for a quarter unless financial performance has improved and therefore sets minimum targets for each quarter that are equal to the earnings achieved for the same quarter in the prior year. The compensation committee requires growth in earnings before any bonuses can be earned due to its belief that growth is achievable with superior effort and will generate the cash necessary to expand the company's operations in accordance with our business plans and increase shareholder value. 
The payout percentage used to calculate the amount of each named executive officer's primary quarterly cash bonus reflects the officer's track record in his or her current position (i.e., newly promoted executives historically have had to prove themselves in their new positions before earning higher payout percentages) and relative ability to impact profitability.
We do not believe it is necessary for payouts under our primary executive cash incentive program to be capped, as cash bonus payments to our named executive officers are tied directly to our financial performance so that they increase only if and to the extent the company's profitability grows. We do not base the cash incentives paid to our executive officers on multiple metrics since we believe the current design of our executive bonus arrangements, along with our other controls, adequately mitigates risk and since the use of multiple metrics would not be in furtherance of our goal of keeping our compensation programs simple, understandable, and transparent, and would risk keeping our executives focused on things other than profitability, thereby depriving them of the clear feedback and motivation necessary to improve our bottom line.
Beginning in 2019, the compensation committee approved a supplemental bonus program for each named executive officer other than Mr. Florness. The supplemental bonus program, known as the ROA (Return on Assets) Plan, is intended to encourage better management of accounts receivable, inventory, and vehicles and provides cash incentive amounts on a quarterly basis for asset management improvement over the same quarter in the prior fiscal year and is described in more detail below. Beginning in 2021, the compensation committee included Mr. Florness in the ROA Plan.
2020 Incentive Program
The bonus arrangements for our named executive officers for 2020 were approved by our compensation committee at its last meeting in 2019. Consistent with prior years, the bonuses for 2020 were based on growth in pre-tax earnings or net earnings of the company and/or the officer's area of responsibility. The bonuses for each quarter were determined by applying a payout percentage to the amount by which pre-tax earnings or net earnings exceeded 100% of pre-tax earnings or net earnings for the same quarter in 2019. The compensation committee determined that the bonus formulas for each of the named executive officers for 2020 would remain unchanged from those in effect at the end of 2019, except that Mr. Florness' and Mr. Owen's bonus percentages increased in recognition of their continued growth, performance, and experience in their roles. The compensation committee otherwise maintained the bonus formulas for each other named executive officer consistent with 2019. 

The specific bonus opportunities for our named executive officers are summarized in the table below. Each named executive officer's cash bonus for each quarter during 2020 was determined by applying the payout percentage listed opposite his or her name below to the amount by which pre-tax earnings or adjusted net earnings of the company and/or the officer's area of responsibility for that quarter exceeded 100% of such earnings in the same quarter of 2019 (the 'minimum target').          
									
	Name	Earnings Type	Payout Percentage
	Mr. Florness	Company-wide pre-tax earnings	1.50%
	Mr. Lewis	Company-wide net earnings	0.90%
	Mr. Owen	Company-wide pre-tax earnings	1.00%
	Mr. Watts (1)
	Pre-tax earnings	2.40% / 0.35%
	Ms. Wisecup	Company-wide pre-tax earnings	0.65%

(1)The bonuses for Mr. Watts were based on growth in pre-tax earnings for the geographic areas under his leadership (which are all areas outside of the United States), with the payout percentage applied to that growth of 2.40%, as well as growth in company pre-tax earnings, with the payout percentage applied to that growth of 0.35%.
The following table sets out, for each quarter in 2020, our actual and minimum target pre-tax earnings and net earnings on a company-wide basis for that quarter, in each case rounded to the nearest thousand. (As indicated above, the 'minimum target' amount in 2020 was 100% of such earnings in the same quarter of 2019.)
															
	2020	Actual
Pre-tax Earnings	Minimum Target
Pre-tax Earnings	Actual
Net Earnings	Minimum Target
Net Earnings
	First quarter	$	269,227,000 		$	257,467,000 		$	202,614,000 		$	194,103,000 	
	Second quarter	313,651,000 		271,378,000 		238,854,000 		204,593,000 	
	Third quarter	287,610,000 		278,351,000 		221,483,000 		213,488,000 	
	Fourth quarter 	262,198,000 		236,465,000 		196,113,000 		178,708,000 	

During 2020, the approximate percentage of the actual and minimum pre-tax earnings of the company attributable to our operations in the geographic area under Mr. Watts' leadership was 12%. 
As noted above, the ROA Plan, which is designed to encourage careful management of assets, namely accounts receivable, inventories, and pick-up trucks, for 2020 was approved by the compensation committee for our named executives officers, other than Mr. Florness. Quarterly bonuses would be payable pursuant to the ROA Plan if a specified level of improvement in asset management relative to the comparable prior year quarter was achieved. Improvement in asset management was assessed using a two-quarter average of total assets divided by the trailing 12-month net sales, which we refer to as the 'performance percentage.' If the performance percentage when compared to the prior year benchmark showed improvement at a level specified in the table below, the named executive officer would receive the corresponding bonus amount. 
						
	Improvement Amount Exceeded	Bonus Payout
	150 basis points	$	15,000 	
	100 basis points (but less than 150 basis points)	$	10,000 	
	50 basis points (but less than 100 basis points)	$	5,000 	

In addition, for each whole percentage improvement (e.g., 41.0%, 40.0%, 39.0%, etc.) a $10,000 bonus would be payable for the quarter when the new whole percentage threshold was first achieved. We achieved improvement and paid bonus amounts to our named executive officers, other than Mr. Florness, pursuant to the ROA Plan for each quarter in fiscal 2020 as follows:
									
	2020	Improvement Amount Exceeded	Bonus Payout
	First quarter	50 basis points (but less than 100 basis points)	$	5,000 	
	Second quarter 	50 basis points (but less than 100 basis points)	5,000 	
	Third quarter	100 basis points (but less than 150 basis points)	10,000 	
	Fourth quarter	150 basis points	15,000 	
	Fourth quarter	Whole percentage improvement (41.0% and 40.0%)	20,000 	
	Total		$	55,000 	

2021 Incentive Program
The bonus arrangements for our named executive officers for 2021 were approved by our compensation committee at its last meeting in 2020. The bonus plans for our named executive officers for 2021 are unchanged from our 2020 bonus plans, except that Mr. Watts' bonus percentage paid on company-wide pre-tax earnings growth decreased due to a planned modification related to continued growth in our international business. Mr. Watt's bonus percentage on pre-tax earnings growth for his geographic area of responsibilities remained unchanged from 2020.

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