National Pension Service Grows Holdings in Fastenal Company $FAST

National Pension Service grew its stake in Fastenal Company (NASDAQ:FAST - Free Report) by 2.9% in the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor owned 1,603,839 shares of the company's stock after buying an additional 45,260 shares during the period. National Pension Service owned approximately 0.14% of Fastenal worth $64,362,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also bought and sold shares of the stock. Mitsubishi UFJ Morgan Stanley Securities Co. Ltd. purchased a new position in Fastenal in the 4th quarter worth approximately $270,000. SBI Okasan Asset Management Co.Ltd. purchased a new position in Fastenal in the 4th quarter worth approximately $931,000. Northwestern Mutual Wealth Management Co. grew its stake in Fastenal by 16.3% in the 4th quarter. Northwestern Mutual Wealth Management Co. now owns 96,120 shares of the company's stock worth $3,857,000 after buying an additional 13,461 shares in the last quarter. Savant Capital LLC grew its stake in Fastenal by 103.9% in the 4th quarter. Savant Capital LLC now owns 42,888 shares of the company's stock worth $1,721,000 after buying an additional 21,852 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Intech Investment Management LLC grew its stake in Fastenal by 16.9% in the 4th quarter. Intech Investment Management LLC now owns 66,528 shares of the company's stock worth $2,670,000 after buying an additional 9,636 shares in the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 81.38% of the company's stock.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other Fastenal news, Director Reyne K. Wisecup sold 36,920 shares of the company's 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 transaction, the director owned 40,000 shares in the company, valued at approximately $1,893,600. This represents a 48.00% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through the SEC website. Company insiders own 0.28% of the company's stock.

Fastenal Trading Down 1.3%

Shares of FAST opened at $44.20 on Friday. The stock has a market capitalization of $50.74 billion, a P/E ratio of 38.77, a PEG ratio of 2.82 and a beta of 0.75. 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 firm has a fifty day simple moving average of $44.96 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $43.83. Fastenal Company has a twelve month low of $38.97 and a twelve month high of $50.63.

Fastenal (NASDAQ:FAST - Get Free Report) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Monday, April 13th. The company reported $0.30 earnings per share for the quarter, meeting the consensus estimate 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 net margin of 15.39% and a return on equity of 33.25%. The firm's revenue for the quarter was up 12.4% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the prior year, the company posted $0.52 EPS. On average, research analysts anticipate that Fastenal Company will post 1.23 EPS for the current year.

Fastenal Dividend Announcement

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, May 26th. Shareholders of record on Tuesday, April 28th were issued a $0.24 dividend. The ex-dividend date was Tuesday, April 28th. This represents a $0.96 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.2%. Fastenal's dividend payout ratio is 84.21%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of equities analysts have commented on FAST shares. Bank of America boosted their price target on shares of Fastenal from $48.00 to $55.00 in a research note on Monday, April 13th. Benchmark reissued a "buy" rating on shares of Fastenal in a research note on Thursday, March 5th. Wolfe Research cut their price objective on shares of Fastenal from $46.00 to $45.00 and set an "underperform" rating for the company in a research note on Tuesday, April 14th. Morgan Stanley reaffirmed a "positive" rating and issued a $45.00 price objective on shares of Fastenal in a research note on Thursday, March 5th. Finally, Barclays upped their price objective on shares of Fastenal from $44.00 to $45.00 and gave the company an "equal weight" rating in a research note on Thursday, April 16th. Five research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, six have assigned a Hold rating and two have given a Sell rating to the company's stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock presently has a consensus rating of "Hold" and an average target price of $49.77.

Fastenal Company 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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