143,616 Shares in Fastenal Company $FAST Purchased by Eurizon Capital SGR S.p.A.

Key Points

• Eurizon Capital SGR S.p.A. opened a new position in Fastenal, buying 143,616 shares worth about $5.77 million in the fourth quarter.
• Fastenal remains heavily held by institutions, with large investors like Vanguard and Geode also increasing positions; overall, institutional ownership stands at 81.38%.
• The company recently reported Q1 earnings of $0.30 per share, matching estimates, while revenue rose 12.4% year over year to $2.20 billion; Fastenal also paid a $0.24 quarterly dividend yielding about 2.2%.

Eurizon Capital SGR S.p.A. purchased a new position in shares of Fastenal Company (NASDAQ:FAST - Free Report) during the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the SEC. The institutional investor purchased 143,616 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $5,767,000.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds have also added to or reduced their stakes in FAST. Vanguard Group Inc. lifted its position in Fastenal by 1.6% during the 3rd quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 151,515,539 shares of the company's stock valued at $7,430,322,000 after purchasing an additional 2,346,045 shares during the period. Geode Capital Management LLC lifted its position in Fastenal by 1.9% during the 4th quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 37,699,836 shares of the company's stock valued at $1,508,216,000 after purchasing an additional 685,047 shares during the period. Invesco Ltd. lifted its position in Fastenal by 14.0% during the 3rd quarter. Invesco Ltd. now owns 18,215,875 shares of the company's stock valued at $893,307,000 after purchasing an additional 2,242,116 shares during the period. Bank of America Corp DE lifted its position in Fastenal by 1.1% during the 3rd quarter. Bank of America Corp DE now owns 15,604,974 shares of the company's stock valued at $765,268,000 after purchasing an additional 173,581 shares during the period. Finally, MIRAE ASSET GLOBAL ETFS HOLDINGS Ltd. lifted its position in Fastenal by 0.3% during the 3rd quarter. MIRAE ASSET GLOBAL ETFS HOLDINGS Ltd. now owns 8,276,145 shares of the company's stock valued at $405,860,000 after purchasing an additional 26,702 shares during the period. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 81.38% of the company's stock.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

FAST has been the topic of a number of research reports. Raymond James Financial set a $48.00 target price on shares of Fastenal in a research report on Thursday, March 5th. Robert W. Baird cut their target price on shares of Fastenal from $52.00 to $50.00 and set an "outperform" rating on the stock in a research report on Tuesday, April 14th. Benchmark restated a "buy" rating on shares of Fastenal in a research report on Thursday, March 5th. Weiss Ratings restated a "buy (b-)" rating on shares of Fastenal in a research report on Friday, March 27th. Finally, Wolfe Research lowered their price target on Fastenal from $46.00 to $45.00 and set an "underperform" rating for the company in a research note on Tuesday, April 14th. Five investment analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, six have issued a Hold rating and two have assigned a Sell rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, Fastenal presently has an average rating of "Hold" and a consensus target price of $49.77.

Insider Transactions at Fastenal

In related news, Director Reyne K. Wisecup sold 36,920 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, March 5th. The stock was sold at an average price of $47.34, for a total transaction of $1,747,792.80. Following the completion of the sale, the director directly owned 40,000 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $1,893,600. This represents a 48.00% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this link. Insiders own 0.28% of the company's stock.

Fastenal Price Performance

NASDAQ FAST opened at $43.99 on Tuesday. The business has a 50 day simple moving average of $44.95 and a 200 day simple moving average of $43.87. Fastenal Company has a 52-week low of $38.97 and a 52-week high of $50.63. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.03, a quick ratio of 2.34 and a current ratio of 4.39. The stock has a market cap of $50.50 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 38.59, a PEG ratio of 2.82 and a beta of 0.73.

Fastenal (NASDAQ:FAST - Get Free Report) last posted its earnings results on Monday, April 13th. The company reported $0.30 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, hitting analysts' consensus estimates of $0.30. Fastenal had a return on equity of 33.25% and a net margin of 15.39%.The business had revenue of $2.20 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $2.19 billion. During the same period in the prior year, the business earned $0.52 EPS. Fastenal's revenue for the quarter was up 12.4% compared to the same quarter last year. Analysts anticipate that Fastenal Company will post 1.23 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Fastenal Announces Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, May 26th. Investors of record on Tuesday, April 28th were paid a dividend of $0.24 per share. This represents a $0.96 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 2.2%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Tuesday, April 28th. Fastenal's dividend payout ratio is presently 84.21%.

Fastenal Profile

Fastenal NASDAQ: FAST is a wholesale distributor of industrial and construction supplies, best known for its broad assortment of fasteners such as bolts, nuts, screws and anchors. Founded in Winona, Minnesota, Fastenal has grown from a regional supplier into a national and international distributor serving a wide range of end markets, including manufacturing, construction, maintenance, repair and operations (MRO), and government customers. The company is publicly traded and operates through a network of locally staffed branches combined with national distribution capabilities.

Product offerings extend beyond fasteners to include tools, safety and personal protective equipment, power transmission components, cutting and welding supplies, janitorial and material handling items, and other industrial consumables.

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