Banco Bilbao Vizcaya Argentaria S.A. Purchases 182,275 Shares of Fastenal Company $FAST

Banco Bilbao Vizcaya Argentaria S.A. grew its position in Fastenal Company (NASDAQ:FAST) by 747.0% during the 3rd quarter, HoldingsChannel reports. The firm owned 206,676 shares of the company’s stock after purchasing an additional 182,275 shares during the quarter. Banco Bilbao Vizcaya Argentaria S.A.’s holdings in Fastenal were worth $10,135,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors also recently made changes to their positions in FAST. Vanguard Group Inc. grew its holdings in shares of Fastenal by 103.5% in the 2nd quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 149,169,494 shares of the company’s stock valued at $6,265,119,000 after buying an additional 75,852,223 shares during the period. State Street Corp raised its stake in Fastenal by 99.6% during the 2nd quarter. State Street Corp now owns 54,317,385 shares of the company’s stock worth $2,281,330,000 after buying an additional 27,107,520 shares during the period. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. lifted its holdings in Fastenal by 103.4% during the second quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. now owns 45,995,937 shares of the company’s stock worth $1,931,830,000 after acquiring an additional 23,380,022 shares in the last quarter. Norges Bank bought a new position in Fastenal during the second quarter worth about $638,648,000. Finally, Invesco Ltd. grew its stake in Fastenal by 141.9% in the second quarter. Invesco Ltd. now owns 15,973,759 shares of the company’s stock valued at $670,898,000 after acquiring an additional 9,370,909 shares during the period. 81.38% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Insider Activity at Fastenal

In other news, Director Reyne K. Wisecup sold 36,920 shares of Fastenal 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 sale, the director directly owned 40,000 shares in the company, valued at $1,893,600. This trade represents a 48.00% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at the SEC website. Also, Director Scott Satterlee sold 15,964 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Friday, January 23rd. The stock was sold at an average price of $44.19, for a total transaction 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. This represents a 24.20% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale is available in the SEC filing. 0.28% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

Fastenal Stock Performance

FAST opened at $45.46 on Monday. The business’s 50-day moving average price is $44.91 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $44.10. Fastenal Company has a 1 year low of $35.31 and a 1 year high of $50.63. The company has a market capitalization of $52.20 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 41.33, a P/E/G ratio of 2.90 and a beta of 0.88. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.03, a current ratio of 4.85 and a quick ratio of 2.41.

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

Fastenal Increases Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, February 26th. Stockholders of record on Thursday, January 29th were paid a dividend of $0.24 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Thursday, January 29th. This represents a $0.96 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 2.1%. This is an increase from Fastenal’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.22. Fastenal’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 87.27%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

FAST has been the subject of several recent analyst reports. Wolfe Research increased their price target on Fastenal from $42.00 to $43.00 and gave the stock an “underperform” rating in a report on Friday, February 27th. Benchmark reiterated a “buy” rating on shares of Fastenal in a report on Thursday, March 5th. Weiss Ratings reiterated a “buy (b-)” rating on shares of Fastenal in a research report on Monday, December 29th. Barclays increased their target price on Fastenal from $43.00 to $44.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a research note on Friday, March 6th. Finally, Raymond James Financial set a $48.00 target price on shares of Fastenal in a report on Thursday, March 5th. Five 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. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company presently has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $48.83.

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.