Fastenal (NASDAQ:FAST) Shares Sold by Handelsbanken Fonder AB

Handelsbanken Fonder AB trimmed its stake in Fastenal (NASDAQ:FAST) by 2.1% in the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The fund owned 267,841 shares of the company’s stock after selling 5,636 shares during the quarter. Handelsbanken Fonder AB’s holdings in Fastenal were worth $17,348,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other institutional investors also recently made changes to their positions in the company. Hartford Financial Management Inc. raised its holdings in shares of Fastenal by 46.9% in the fourth quarter. Hartford Financial Management Inc. now owns 479 shares of the company’s stock worth $31,000 after acquiring an additional 153 shares during the last quarter. Harel Insurance Investments & Financial Services Ltd. acquired a new position in Fastenal in the fourth quarter valued at $35,000. Criterion Capital Advisors LLC acquired a new position in Fastenal in the fourth quarter valued at $43,000. Livforsakringsbolaget Skandia Omsesidigt increased its stake in Fastenal by 77.7% in the fourth quarter. Livforsakringsbolaget Skandia Omsesidigt now owns 1,084 shares of the company’s stock valued at $70,000 after purchasing an additional 474 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Pacific Center for Financial Services acquired a new position in Fastenal in the third quarter valued at $66,000. 81.38% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Insider Buying and Selling at Fastenal

In other Fastenal news, VP Charles S. Miller sold 11,076 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Friday, March 15th. The stock was sold at an average price of $75.16, for a total value of $832,472.16. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available through the SEC website. In related news, Director Daniel L. Johnson acquired 3,350 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Wednesday, April 17th. The shares were bought at an average cost of $68.38 per share, with a total value of $229,073.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the director now directly owns 10,595 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $724,486.10. The purchase was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. Also, VP Charles S. Miller sold 11,076 shares of Fastenal stock in a transaction dated Friday, March 15th. The stock was sold at an average price of $75.16, for a total value of $832,472.16. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold 48,050 shares of company stock valued at $3,411,049 over the last three months. 0.41% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

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

Fastenal Price Performance

Shares of Fastenal stock opened at $67.45 on Tuesday. Fastenal has a twelve month low of $52.28 and a twelve month high of $79.04. The stock has a market capitalization of $38.62 billion, a P/E ratio of 33.39, a PEG ratio of 3.53 and a beta of 1.05. The company has a current ratio of 4.83, a quick ratio of 2.49 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.06. The business’s fifty day moving average price is $73.57 and its 200 day moving average price is $66.55.

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

Fastenal Dividend Announcement

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, May 23rd. Shareholders of record on Thursday, April 25th will be given a $0.39 dividend. This represents a $1.56 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.31%. The ex-dividend date is Wednesday, April 24th. Fastenal’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 77.23%.

Fastenal Company 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.