Fastenal (NASDAQ:FAST) Stake Raised by Livforsakringsbolaget Skandia Omsesidigt

Livforsakringsbolaget Skandia Omsesidigt grew its holdings in shares of Fastenal (NASDAQ:FAST) by 77.7% during the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund owned 1,084 shares of the company’s stock after buying an additional 474 shares during the period. Livforsakringsbolaget Skandia Omsesidigt’s holdings in Fastenal were worth $70,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission.

A number of other hedge funds also recently made changes to their positions in FAST. Norges Bank bought a new stake in Fastenal during the fourth quarter worth approximately $268,570,000. Morgan Stanley raised its holdings in Fastenal by 37.8% during the fourth quarter. Morgan Stanley now owns 9,092,207 shares of the company’s stock worth $430,243,000 after purchasing an additional 2,492,722 shares in the last quarter. Envestnet Asset Management Inc. raised its holdings in Fastenal by 47.3% during the third quarter. Envestnet Asset Management Inc. now owns 4,691,506 shares of the company’s stock worth $256,344,000 after purchasing an additional 1,505,936 shares in the last quarter. Invesco Ltd. grew its position in Fastenal by 16.5% in the third quarter. Invesco Ltd. now owns 6,745,302 shares of the company’s stock worth $368,563,000 after buying an additional 957,091 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Select Equity Group L.P. grew its position in Fastenal by 60.2% in the first quarter. Select Equity Group L.P. now owns 2,481,822 shares of the company’s stock worth $133,869,000 after buying an additional 933,068 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors own 81.38% of the company’s stock.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other Fastenal news, VP Charles S. Miller sold 11,076 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Friday, March 15th. The shares were sold at an average price of $75.16, for a total transaction of $832,472.16. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this link. In other news, insider William Joseph Drazkowski sold 11,968 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Thursday, January 25th. The shares were sold at an average price of $69.10, for a total transaction of $826,988.80. Following the transaction, the insider now owns 5,997 shares in the company, valued at approximately $414,392.70. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is accessible through the SEC website. Also, VP Charles S. Miller sold 11,076 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Friday, March 15th. The stock was sold at an average price of $75.16, for a total transaction of $832,472.16. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold a total of 71,640 shares of company stock valued at $5,044,657 in the last quarter. Insiders own 0.41% of the company’s stock.

Fastenal Stock Up 0.1 %

FAST stock opened at $67.57 on Friday. The company has a current ratio of 4.83, a quick ratio of 2.49 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.06. Fastenal has a 1 year low of $52.28 and a 1 year high of $79.04. The company has a fifty day simple moving average of $73.62 and a 200 day simple moving average of $66.29. The firm has a market cap of $38.69 billion, a PE ratio of 33.45, a PEG ratio of 3.53 and a beta of 1.05.

Fastenal (NASDAQ:FAST) last released its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, April 11th. The company reported $0.52 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $0.53 by ($0.01). Fastenal had a net margin of 15.68% and a return on equity of 33.98%. The business had revenue of $1.90 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $1.91 billion. During the same period in the previous year, the firm posted $0.52 EPS. The firm’s revenue for the quarter was up 1.9% on a year-over-year basis. Sell-side analysts anticipate that Fastenal will post 2.13 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Fastenal Announces Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, May 23rd. Shareholders of record on Thursday, April 25th will be given a dividend of $0.39 per share. This represents a $1.56 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 2.31%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Wednesday, April 24th. Fastenal’s dividend payout ratio is 77.23%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several research analysts have issued reports on FAST shares. Loop Capital decreased their price target on shares of Fastenal from $71.00 to $66.00 and set a “hold” rating on the stock in a research report on Monday, April 15th. HSBC lifted their price target on shares of Fastenal from $59.00 to $64.00 and gave the stock a “hold” rating in a research report on Monday, April 15th. Robert W. Baird lowered their price objective on shares of Fastenal from $77.00 to $71.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a research report on Friday, April 12th. Finally, Stifel Nicolaus lifted their price objective on shares of Fastenal from $75.00 to $85.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Monday, March 18th. Five analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and one has issued a buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $67.67.

Fastenal 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.