Mirae Asset Global Investments Co. Ltd. Has $64.26 Million Holdings in Fastenal Company $FAST

Key Points

• Mirae Asset Global Investments raised its Fastenal stake by 4.6% to 1,601,280 shares, holding about $64.26 million (≈0.14% of the company) at quarter end.
• Institutional ownership is high at 81.38%, led by large positions from Vanguard and Bank of America, while corporate insiders have recently trimmed their holdings through notable stock sales.
• Analysts are mixed with a consensus "Hold" and an average target of $49.77; Fastenal's latest quarter met EPS ($0.30) and posted $2.20B revenue (+12.4% y/y), and the company declared a $0.24 quarterly dividend (2.1% yield).

Mirae Asset Global Investments Co. Ltd. raised its position in shares of Fastenal Company (NASDAQ:FAST - Free Report) by 4.6% in the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm owned 1,601,280 shares of the company's stock after acquiring an additional 69,796 shares during the period. Mirae Asset Global Investments Co. Ltd. owned approximately 0.14% of Fastenal worth $64,259,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently made changes to their positions in the company. Bank of America Corp DE lifted its holdings in Fastenal by 106.1% during the 2nd quarter. Bank of America Corp DE now owns 15,431,393 shares of the company's stock worth $648,118,000 after purchasing an additional 7,943,217 shares during the last quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. grew its holdings in Fastenal by 1.6% in the 3rd quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 151,515,539 shares of the company's stock valued at $7,430,322,000 after buying an additional 2,346,045 shares in the last quarter. Invesco Ltd. increased its position in Fastenal by 14.0% during the 3rd quarter. Invesco Ltd. now owns 18,215,875 shares of the company's stock worth $893,307,000 after buying an additional 2,242,116 shares during the period. American Century Companies Inc. increased its position in Fastenal by 90.7% during the 3rd quarter. American Century Companies Inc. now owns 3,590,292 shares of the company's stock worth $176,068,000 after buying an additional 1,707,396 shares during the period. Finally, Raymond James Financial Inc. lifted its holdings in shares of Fastenal by 112.1% during the second quarter. Raymond James Financial Inc. now owns 2,771,861 shares of the company's stock worth $116,418,000 after buying an additional 1,464,781 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 81.38% of the company's stock.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several equities analysts recently commented on FAST shares. Robert W. Baird decreased their price target on shares of Fastenal from $52.00 to $50.00 and set an "outperform" rating on the stock in a research note on Tuesday. Raymond James Financial set a $48.00 price objective on shares of Fastenal in a research note on Thursday, March 5th. Wolfe Research decreased their target price on shares of Fastenal from $46.00 to $45.00 and set an "underperform" rating on the stock in a research report on Tuesday. Barclays raised their target price on shares of Fastenal from $44.00 to $45.00 and gave the stock an "equal weight" rating in a report on Thursday. Finally, Bank of America lifted their price target on shares of Fastenal from $48.00 to $55.00 in a research report on Monday. Five investment analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, six have issued a Hold rating and two have given a Sell rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has a consensus rating of "Hold" and an average target price of $49.77.

Fastenal Stock Up 0.7%

Shares of FAST opened at $44.72 on Friday. The firm has a 50 day simple moving average of $45.97 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $43.74. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.03, a current ratio of 4.39 and a quick ratio of 2.41. Fastenal Company has a one year low of $38.97 and a one year high of $50.63. The company has a market cap of $51.35 billion, a P/E ratio of 39.23, a P/E/G ratio of 2.82 and a beta of 0.84.

Fastenal (NASDAQ:FAST - Get Free Report) last released its earnings results on Monday, April 13th. The company reported $0.30 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, meeting analysts' consensus estimates of $0.30. The firm had revenue of $2.20 billion for 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 revenue for the quarter was up 12.4% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the previous year, the business posted $0.52 earnings per share. Research analysts forecast that Fastenal Company will post 2.15 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Fastenal Dividend Announcement

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

Insider Activity at Fastenal

In other news, Director Scott Satterlee sold 15,964 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction on Friday, January 23rd. The shares were sold at an average price of $44.19, for a total transaction of $705,449.16. Following the completion of the transaction, the director owned 50,000 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $2,209,500. This trade represents a 24.20% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through the SEC website. Also, Director Reyne K. Wisecup sold 36,920 shares of Fastenal stock in a transaction 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 transaction, the director owned 40,000 shares in the company, valued at approximately $1,893,600. This trade represents a 48.00% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale is available in the SEC filing. Corporate insiders own 0.28% of the company's stock.

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.

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