Arizona State Retirement System Trims Stock Holdings in Fastenal Company $FAST

Key Points

• Arizona State Retirement System trimmed its stake in Fastenal by 6.9% in the fourth quarter, selling 23,360 shares and now holding 314,967 shares valued at approximately $12.64 million.
• Fastenal reported quarterly EPS of $0.30, matching estimates, with revenue of $2.20 billion (up 12.4% year-over-year), and announced a quarterly dividend of $0.24 ($0.96 annualized, ~2.1% yield).
• About 81.38% of Fastenal is owned by institutional investors; a director sold 36,920 shares (reducing their holding by 48%), and the analyst consensus is a "Hold" with a target price of $49.77.

Arizona State Retirement System reduced its stake in Fastenal Company (NASDAQ:FAST - Free Report) by 6.9% during the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund owned 314,967 shares of the company's stock after selling 23,360 shares during the period. Arizona State Retirement System's holdings in Fastenal were worth $12,640,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other institutional investors have also recently modified their holdings of the stock. N.E.W. Advisory Services LLC grew its stake in shares of Fastenal by 101.2% in the fourth quarter. N.E.W. Advisory Services LLC now owns 871 shares of the company's stock worth $35,000 after acquiring an additional 438 shares during the last quarter. Confluence Wealth Services Inc. grew its stake in shares of Fastenal by 3.4% in the fourth quarter. Confluence Wealth Services Inc. now owns 38,435 shares of the company's stock worth $1,542,000 after acquiring an additional 1,262 shares during the last quarter. HB Wealth Management LLC grew its stake in shares of Fastenal by 11.4% in the fourth quarter. HB Wealth Management LLC now owns 86,604 shares of the company's stock worth $3,475,000 after acquiring an additional 8,865 shares during the last quarter. Caprock Group LLC grew its stake in shares of Fastenal by 59.5% in the fourth quarter. Caprock Group LLC now owns 65,155 shares of the company's stock worth $2,615,000 after acquiring an additional 24,312 shares during the last quarter. Finally, KLP Kapitalforvaltning AS grew its stake in shares of Fastenal by 0.4% in the fourth quarter. KLP Kapitalforvaltning AS now owns 426,296 shares of the company's stock worth $17,107,000 after acquiring an additional 1,600 shares during the last quarter. 81.38% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Fastenal Stock Performance

Shares of FAST opened at $44.69 on Friday. The company has a quick ratio of 2.34, a current ratio of 4.39 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.03. The business has a 50-day simple moving average of $45.81 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $43.59. The stock has a market cap of $51.31 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 39.20, a PEG ratio of 2.90 and a beta of 0.84. Fastenal Company has a 52 week low of $38.97 and a 52 week high of $50.63.

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

Fastenal Announces Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, May 26th. Shareholders of record on Tuesday, April 28th will be given a $0.24 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Tuesday, April 28th. This represents a $0.96 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 2.1%. Fastenal's dividend payout ratio is presently 84.21%.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other Fastenal news, Director Reyne K. Wisecup sold 36,920 shares of the company's stock in a transaction dated Thursday, March 5th. The stock was sold at an average price of $47.34, for a total value of $1,747,792.80. Following the completion of the sale, the director owned 40,000 shares in the company, valued at $1,893,600. This represents a 48.00% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available through this hyperlink. 0.28% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of brokerages have recently issued reports on FAST. JPMorgan Chase & Co. upped their price target on Fastenal from $46.00 to $47.00 and gave the company a "neutral" rating in a report on Thursday, April 9th. Barclays upped their price target on Fastenal from $44.00 to $45.00 and gave the company an "equal weight" rating in a report on Thursday, April 16th. Robert W. Baird lowered their price target on Fastenal from $52.00 to $50.00 and set an "outperform" rating on the stock in a report on Tuesday, April 14th. Benchmark reaffirmed a "buy" rating on shares of Fastenal in a report on Thursday, March 5th. Finally, UBS Group reaffirmed a "neutral" rating and set a $46.00 price target on shares of Fastenal in a report on Wednesday, January 21st. Five research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, six have assigned a Hold rating and two have assigned a Sell rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has an average rating of "Hold" and a consensus target price of $49.77.

About Fastenal

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.

Want to see what other hedge funds are holding FAST? Visit HoldingsChannel.com to get the latest 13F filings and insider trades for Fastenal Company (NASDAQ:FAST - Free Report).

This instant news alert was generated by narrative science technology and financial data from MarketBeat in order to provide readers with the fastest reporting and unbiased coverage. Please send any questions or comments about this story to contact@marketbeat.com.