Fastenal Company $FAST Position Increased by Lansforsakringar Fondforvaltning AB publ

Lansforsakringar Fondforvaltning AB publ raised its stake in Fastenal Company (NASDAQ:FAST) by 5.0% during the 3rd quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the SEC. The institutional investor owned 378,757 shares of the company’s stock after buying an additional 18,102 shares during the period. Lansforsakringar Fondforvaltning AB publ’s holdings in Fastenal were worth $18,574,000 as of its most recent filing with the SEC.

Several other large investors have also modified their holdings of FAST. Vanguard Group Inc. boosted its position in shares of Fastenal by 1.6% in the third quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 151,515,539 shares of the company’s stock worth $7,430,322,000 after buying an additional 2,346,045 shares during the period. National Pension Service lifted its stake in Fastenal by 3.6% in the 3rd quarter. National Pension Service now owns 1,558,579 shares of the company’s stock worth $76,433,000 after acquiring an additional 53,888 shares in the last quarter. Nordea Investment Management AB boosted its position in Fastenal by 6.3% during the 3rd quarter. Nordea Investment Management AB now owns 3,713,469 shares of the company’s stock worth $181,626,000 after acquiring an additional 219,154 shares during the period. Fifth Third Wealth Advisors LLC grew its stake in Fastenal by 7,923.2% during the 3rd quarter. Fifth Third Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 1,268,795 shares of the company’s stock valued at $62,222,000 after acquiring an additional 1,252,981 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Arjuna Capital acquired a new position in shares of Fastenal in the 3rd quarter valued at about $3,999,000. 81.38% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several analysts recently commented on the stock. Wolfe Research decreased their price target on shares of Fastenal from $43.00 to $42.00 and set an “underperform” rating for the company in a report on Wednesday, January 21st. Sanford C. Bernstein reissued an “underperform” rating on shares of Fastenal in a research note on Wednesday, January 21st. Weiss Ratings restated a “buy (b-)” rating on shares of Fastenal in a report on Monday, December 29th. Robert W. Baird increased their price objective on Fastenal from $49.00 to $51.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a report on Thursday, February 5th. Finally, UBS Group restated a “neutral” rating and issued a $46.00 target price on shares of Fastenal in a research note on Wednesday, January 21st. Four analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, seven have issued a Hold rating and two have given a Sell rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, Fastenal presently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $48.18.

Fastenal Trading Up 0.0%

Fastenal stock opened at $46.22 on Monday. Fastenal Company has a one year low of $35.31 and a one year high of $50.63. The company’s fifty day moving average price is $43.57 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $44.43. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.03, a current ratio of 4.85 and a quick ratio of 2.41. The company has a market capitalization of $53.07 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 42.02, a PEG ratio of 2.95 and a beta of 0.89.

Fastenal (NASDAQ:FAST) last released its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, January 20th. The company reported $0.26 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, hitting the consensus estimate of $0.26. Fastenal had a return on equity of 32.83% and a net margin of 15.35%.The company had revenue of $2.03 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $2.04 billion. During the same quarter in the prior year, the company posted $0.46 EPS. The firm’s revenue was up 11.1% on a year-over-year basis. On average, analysts forecast that Fastenal Company will post 2.15 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Fastenal Increases Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, February 26th. Stockholders of record on Thursday, January 29th will be given a $0.24 dividend. This is a positive change from Fastenal’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.22. This represents a $0.96 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 2.1%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Thursday, January 29th. Fastenal’s payout ratio is 87.27%.

Insider Activity at Fastenal

In other news, Director Scott Satterlee sold 15,964 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Friday, January 23rd. The shares were sold at an average price of $44.19, for a total value of $705,449.16. Following the completion of the sale, the director directly owned 50,000 shares in the company, valued at approximately $2,209,500. The trade was a 24.20% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. 0.37% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

Fastenal 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.