Groupe la Francaise Has $5.67 Million Stock Position in Fastenal Company $FAST

Groupe la Francaise lifted its position in Fastenal Company (NASDAQ:FAST) by 139.9% in the second quarter, Holdings Channel.com reports. The institutional investor owned 135,628 shares of the company’s stock after buying an additional 79,090 shares during the period. Groupe la Francaise’s holdings in Fastenal were worth $5,671,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other hedge funds have also added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Patton Fund Management Inc. bought a new position in Fastenal during the 2nd quarter worth $229,000. Values First Advisors Inc. grew its stake in shares of Fastenal by 183.0% in the second quarter. Values First Advisors Inc. now owns 9,378 shares of the company’s stock valued at $394,000 after acquiring an additional 6,064 shares in the last quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. increased its position in Fastenal by 8.9% during the first quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. now owns 22,615,915 shares of the company’s stock worth $1,753,864,000 after acquiring an additional 1,850,871 shares during the period. Vanguard Group Inc. raised its stake in Fastenal by 103.5% in the 2nd quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 149,169,494 shares of the company’s stock worth $6,265,119,000 after purchasing an additional 75,852,223 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Optas LLC boosted its holdings in Fastenal by 100.2% in the 2nd quarter. Optas LLC now owns 13,712 shares of the company’s stock valued at $576,000 after purchasing an additional 6,863 shares during the period. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 81.38% of the company’s stock.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, Director Sarah N. Nielsen acquired 1,000 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, November 19th. The stock was acquired at an average cost of $39.60 per share, for a total transaction of $39,600.00. Following the transaction, the director directly owned 5,000 shares in the company, valued at $198,000. This trade represents a 25.00% increase in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this hyperlink. Also, Director Hsenghung Sam Hsu bought 1,000 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Thursday, November 13th. The stock was bought at an average price of $49.58 per share, for a total transaction of $49,580.00. Following the transaction, the director directly owned 10,000 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $495,800. This represents a 11.11% increase in their ownership of the stock. The SEC filing for this purchase provides additional information. Over the last quarter, insiders have purchased 3,000 shares of company stock valued at $131,630. 0.37% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Fastenal Stock Up 1.9%

NASDAQ FAST opened at $41.22 on Thursday. Fastenal Company has a fifty-two week low of $35.31 and a fifty-two week high of $50.63. The business has a fifty day moving average price of $42.78 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $44.39. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.03, a current ratio of 4.26 and a quick ratio of 2.19. The stock has a market capitalization of $47.32 billion, a PE ratio of 38.52, a PEG ratio of 3.36 and a beta of 0.89.

Fastenal (NASDAQ:FAST) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, October 14th. The company reported $0.29 earnings per share for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $0.30 by ($0.01). The business had revenue of $2.13 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $2.13 billion. Fastenal had a return on equity of 32.69% and a net margin of 15.34%.Fastenal’s quarterly revenue was up 11.7% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the prior year, the company earned $0.26 earnings per share. Equities analysts expect that Fastenal Company will post 2.15 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Fastenal Dividend Announcement

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, November 25th. Investors of record on Tuesday, October 28th were issued a dividend of $0.22 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Tuesday, October 28th. This represents a $0.88 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 2.1%. Fastenal’s payout ratio is 82.24%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several research analysts have recently commented on FAST shares. Wolfe Research raised shares of Fastenal from an “underperform” rating to a “peer perform” rating and set a $43.00 target price on the stock in a report on Thursday, November 13th. Sanford C. Bernstein began coverage on Fastenal in a research note on Tuesday, November 11th. They set an “underperform” rating and a $38.00 price objective on the stock. Barclays dropped their price objective on Fastenal from $45.00 to $44.00 and set an “equal weight” rating for the company in a report on Thursday, November 13th. Baird R W raised Fastenal from a “hold” rating to a “strong-buy” rating in a report on Thursday, August 7th. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. boosted their price target on Fastenal from $41.00 to $46.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research note on Thursday, September 4th. One analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, three have given a Buy rating, nine have assigned a Hold rating and two have given a Sell rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, Fastenal has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $46.32.

Fastenal 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.