North Dakota State Investment Board Takes Position in Fastenal Company $FAST

Key Points

• North Dakota State Investment Board initiated a new position in Fastenal, buying 39,369 shares valued at about $1.58 million in the fourth quarter.
• Institutional ownership of Fastenal remains high at 81.38%, with major holders like Vanguard and Franklin Resources also increasing their stakes recently.
• Fastenal reported quarterly EPS of $0.30, matching expectations, while revenue of $2.20 billion slightly beat estimates and was up 12.4% year over year.

North Dakota State Investment Board acquired a new stake in shares of Fastenal Company (NASDAQ:FAST - Free Report) in the 4th quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor acquired 39,369 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $1,580,000.

Other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently modified their holdings of the company. Vanguard Group Inc. raised its stake in shares of Fastenal by 1.6% during the third quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 151,515,539 shares of the company's stock valued at $7,430,322,000 after acquiring an additional 2,346,045 shares during the last quarter. National Pension Service raised its stake in Fastenal by 3.6% in the third quarter. National Pension Service now owns 1,558,579 shares of the company's stock worth $76,433,000 after buying an additional 53,888 shares in the last quarter. Franklin Resources Inc. raised its stake in Fastenal by 1.2% in the third quarter. Franklin Resources Inc. now owns 7,387,472 shares of the company's stock worth $362,282,000 after buying an additional 90,095 shares in the last quarter. BlueStem Wealth Partners LLC bought a new position in Fastenal in the third quarter worth about $634,000. Finally, Arjuna Capital bought a new position in Fastenal in the third quarter worth about $3,999,000. 81.38% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of equities analysts recently issued reports on the stock. Bank of America increased their price target on shares of Fastenal from $48.00 to $55.00 in a research note on Monday, April 13th. Robert W. Baird decreased their price target on shares of Fastenal from $52.00 to $50.00 and set an "outperform" rating for the company in a research note on Tuesday, April 14th. Weiss Ratings reaffirmed a "buy (b-)" rating on shares of Fastenal in a research note on Friday, March 27th. Morgan Stanley reaffirmed a "positive" rating and set a $45.00 target price on shares of Fastenal in a research note on Thursday, March 5th. Finally, Sanford C. Bernstein reaffirmed an "underperform" rating and set a $42.00 target price on shares of Fastenal in a research note on Tuesday, April 14th. Five research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, six have assigned a Hold rating and two have issued a Sell rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has an average rating of "Hold" and a consensus target price of $49.77.

Fastenal Trading Down 1.0%

NASDAQ:FAST opened at $43.57 on Wednesday. The company's 50 day moving average price is $45.23 and its 200-day moving average price is $43.68. Fastenal Company has a 52 week low of $38.97 and a 52 week high of $50.63. 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 stock has a market cap of $50.02 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 38.22, a PEG ratio of 2.80 and a beta of 0.75.

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

Fastenal Dividend Announcement

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 issued a dividend of $0.24 per share. This represents a $0.96 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.2%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Tuesday, April 28th. Fastenal's payout ratio is currently 84.21%.

Insider Activity

In related news, Director Reyne K. Wisecup sold 36,920 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, March 5th. The shares were 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 directly owned 40,000 shares of the company's stock, 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 SEC, which can be accessed through this link. Company 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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