Junto Capital Management LP Makes New Investment in Fastenal Company $FAST

Key Points

• Junto Capital Management LP acquired a new stake in Fastenal Company, purchasing 640,524 shares valued at approximately $49.67 million, representing about 0.11% of the company.
• Fastenal reported a quarterly earnings per share of $0.29, beating analysts' expectations, with revenues rising 8.6% year-over-year to $2.08 billion.
• The company's dividend was recently cut, with a quarterly payment of $0.22 per share and an annual yield of 1.8%, reflecting a dividend payout ratio of 84.62%.

Junto Capital Management LP bought a new position in Fastenal Company (NASDAQ:FAST - Free Report) during the first quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor bought 640,524 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $49,673,000. Junto Capital Management LP owned about 0.11% of Fastenal as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other institutional investors also recently bought and sold shares of FAST. Vanguard Group Inc. boosted its position in Fastenal by 1.4% in the 1st quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 73,317,271 shares of the company's stock worth $5,685,754,000 after purchasing an additional 1,016,479 shares in the last quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. lifted its stake in shares of Fastenal by 8.9% in the 1st quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. now owns 22,615,915 shares of the company's stock valued at $1,753,864,000 after purchasing an additional 1,850,871 shares during the period. Baird Financial Group Inc. boosted its holdings in Fastenal by 1.7% during the first quarter. Baird Financial Group Inc. now owns 8,418,765 shares of the company's stock worth $652,875,000 after buying an additional 142,972 shares in the last quarter. Royal Bank of Canada grew its position in Fastenal by 1.7% during the fourth quarter. Royal Bank of Canada now owns 7,018,546 shares of the company's stock valued at $504,703,000 after buying an additional 116,866 shares during the period. Finally, Principal Financial Group Inc. increased its holdings in Fastenal by 2.6% in the first quarter. Principal Financial Group Inc. now owns 6,591,850 shares of the company's stock valued at $511,198,000 after buying an additional 168,830 shares in the last quarter. 81.38% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of equities analysts recently weighed in on the company. Robert W. Baird raised Fastenal from a "neutral" rating to an "outperform" rating and upped their price target for the stock from $47.00 to $55.00 in a report on Thursday, August 7th. Stephens raised their target price on Fastenal from $40.00 to $45.00 and gave the company an "equal weight" rating in a research report on Tuesday, July 15th. Wolfe Research reaffirmed a "positive" rating on shares of Fastenal in a research note on Monday, July 14th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. boosted their price target on shares of Fastenal from $38.00 to $41.00 and gave the stock a "neutral" rating in a research report on Tuesday, July 15th. Finally, Loop Capital restated a "hold" rating on shares of Fastenal 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 assigned a Hold rating and one has assigned a Sell rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock has an average rating of "Hold" and a consensus price target of $46.36.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other news, insider Jeffery Michael Watts sold 48,724 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction dated Friday, August 8th. The stock was sold at an average price of $48.05, for a total transaction of $2,341,188.20. Following the sale, the insider owned 11,880 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $570,834. This trade represents a 80.40% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through the SEC website. Also, EVP William Joseph Drazkowski sold 6,842 shares of the business's stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, August 15th. The stock was sold at an average price of $48.67, for a total transaction of $333,000.14. Following the sale, the executive vice president owned 11,994 shares of the company's stock, valued at $583,747.98. This represents a 36.32% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last quarter, insiders have sold 111,230 shares of company stock worth $5,288,364. Insiders own 0.37% of the company's stock.

Fastenal Stock Down 0.9%

Shares of NASDAQ FAST traded down $0.47 during mid-day trading on Tuesday, hitting $49.19. The company had a trading volume of 4,781,622 shares, compared to its average volume of 6,547,531. Fastenal Company has a 1-year low of $32.04 and a 1-year high of $50.63. The company has a market capitalization of $56.45 billion, a PE ratio of 47.30, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 4.52 and a beta of 0.97. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.03, a current ratio of 4.22 and a quick ratio of 2.12. The business's 50-day simple moving average is $46.43 and its 200 day simple moving average is $41.97.

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

Fastenal Cuts Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, August 26th. Investors of record on Tuesday, July 29th were paid a dividend of $0.22 per share. The ex-dividend date was Tuesday, July 29th. This represents a $0.88 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.8%. Fastenal's payout ratio is presently 84.62%.

About Fastenal

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.