BNP PARIBAS ASSET MANAGEMENT Holding S.A. Has $8.64 Million Holdings in Fastenal Company $FAST

Key Points

• BNP PARIBAS ASSET MANAGEMENT reduced its stake in Fastenal Company by 84.5% in Q1, resulting in ownership of 111,476 shares worth approximately $8.64 million.
• Fastenal reported a quarterly EPS of $0.29, surpassing analyst expectations, and its revenue increased by 8.6% year-over-year to $2.08 billion.
• The company has a currently announced quarterly dividend of $0.22 per share, representing an annual yield of 1.8% with a payout ratio of 84.62%.

BNP PARIBAS ASSET MANAGEMENT Holding S.A. lowered its position in Fastenal Company (NASDAQ:FAST - Free Report) by 84.5% in the first quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund owned 111,476 shares of the company's stock after selling 609,939 shares during the quarter. BNP PARIBAS ASSET MANAGEMENT Holding S.A.'s holdings in Fastenal were worth $8,644,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors also recently modified their holdings of the company. Horizon Financial Services LLC raised its holdings in shares of Fastenal by 5,330.0% in the 1st quarter. Horizon Financial Services LLC now owns 543 shares of the company's stock valued at $42,000 after purchasing an additional 533 shares during the period. Itau Unibanco Holding S.A. raised its stake in Fastenal by 481.9% in the fourth quarter. Itau Unibanco Holding S.A. now owns 611 shares of the company's stock valued at $44,000 after buying an additional 506 shares during the period. Zions Bancorporation National Association UT bought a new stake in Fastenal in the first quarter valued at approximately $49,000. TruNorth Capital Management LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Fastenal in the first quarter valued at approximately $57,000. Finally, Golden State Wealth Management LLC boosted its stake in shares of Fastenal by 5,661.5% during the 1st quarter. Golden State Wealth Management LLC now owns 749 shares of the company's stock worth $58,000 after acquiring an additional 736 shares during the period. Institutional investors own 81.38% of the company's stock.

Fastenal Stock Performance

Shares of FAST traded up $1.25 during mid-day trading on Friday, hitting $50.39. 5,442,493 shares of the company's stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 5,864,219. The company has a quick ratio of 2.12, a current ratio of 4.22 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.03. Fastenal Company has a 52 week low of $32.04 and a 52 week high of $50.60. The stock's 50-day simple moving average is $45.26 and its 200-day simple moving average is $41.32. The firm has a market cap of $57.83 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 48.45, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 4.47 and a beta of 0.95.

Fastenal (NASDAQ:FAST - Get Free Report) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Monday, July 14th. The company reported $0.29 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $0.28 by $0.01. Fastenal had a return on equity of 32.33% and a net margin of 15.30%.The business had revenue of $2.08 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $2.07 billion. During the same period in the previous year, the company posted $0.25 earnings per share. The firm's revenue for the quarter was up 8.6% compared to the same quarter last year. On average, equities research analysts expect that Fastenal Company will post 2.15 EPS for the current year.

Fastenal Cuts Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, August 26th. Investors of record on Tuesday, July 29th will be given a $0.22 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Tuesday, July 29th. This represents a $0.88 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.7%. Fastenal's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 84.62%.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, CFO Sheryl Ann Lisowski sold 21,052 shares of the company's stock in a transaction dated Thursday, July 17th. The shares were sold at an average price of $45.21, for a total transaction of $951,760.92. Following the completion of the sale, the chief financial officer owned 10,192 shares of the company's stock, valued at $460,780.32. This represents a 67.38% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available through the SEC website. Also, EVP William Joseph Drazkowski sold 6,842 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction dated Friday, August 15th. The shares were sold at an average price of $48.67, for a total transaction of $333,000.14. Following the completion of the transaction, the executive vice president directly owned 11,994 shares in the company, valued at approximately $583,747.98. This represents a 36.32% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold 111,230 shares of company stock worth $5,288,364 in the last ninety days. 0.37% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of research analysts recently weighed in on the company. Loop Capital reissued a "hold" rating on shares of Fastenal in a report on Tuesday, July 15th. Morgan Stanley set a $40.00 price objective on shares of Fastenal and gave the stock an "equal weight" rating in a research report on Thursday, July 3rd. Robert W. Baird raised shares of Fastenal from a "neutral" rating to an "outperform" rating and increased their price objective for the company from $47.00 to $55.00 in a research report on Thursday, August 7th. Northcoast Research started coverage on shares of Fastenal in a research note on Thursday. They set a "neutral" rating for the company. Finally, Stephens lifted their target price on shares of Fastenal from $40.00 to $45.00 and gave the stock an "equal weight" rating in a report on Tuesday, July 15th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, four have assigned a Buy rating, eight have issued a Hold rating and one has issued a Sell rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock presently has a consensus rating of "Hold" and an average price target of $46.36.

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.