Fastenal Company $FAST Shares Sold by Nordea Investment Management AB

Nordea Investment Management AB lowered its holdings in shares of Fastenal Company (NASDAQ:FAST) by 8.3% during the 4th quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor owned 3,405,900 shares of the company’s stock after selling 307,569 shares during the period. Nordea Investment Management AB’s holdings in Fastenal were worth $137,820,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other institutional investors also recently added to or reduced their stakes in FAST. Vanguard Group Inc. raised its position in shares of Fastenal by 1.6% during the 3rd 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 in the last quarter. National Pension Service lifted its stake in shares of 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 during the period. Franklin Resources Inc. boosted its holdings in shares of Fastenal by 1.2% in the third quarter. Franklin Resources Inc. now owns 7,387,472 shares of the company’s stock valued at $362,282,000 after acquiring an additional 90,095 shares in the last quarter. Fifth Third Wealth Advisors LLC increased its stake in shares of Fastenal by 7,923.2% during the third 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 during the period. Finally, BlueStem Wealth Partners LLC acquired a new position in shares of Fastenal during the third quarter valued at approximately $634,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 81.38% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of equities research analysts have weighed in on FAST shares. Morgan Stanley restated a “positive” rating and issued a $45.00 target price on shares of Fastenal in a research report on Thursday, March 5th. Jefferies Financial Group set a $52.00 price target on Fastenal and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Monday, December 15th. UBS Group reissued a “neutral” rating and issued a $46.00 price objective 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. Finally, Wolfe Research raised their target price on Fastenal from $42.00 to $43.00 and gave the company an “underperform” rating in a research note on Friday, February 27th. Five equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, six have given a Hold rating and two have issued a Sell rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock presently has an average rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $48.83.

Fastenal Trading Down 1.6%

Shares of NASDAQ:FAST opened at $43.76 on Monday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.03, a quick ratio of 2.41 and a current ratio of 4.85. The stock has a market capitalization of $50.25 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 39.78, a PEG ratio of 2.79 and a beta of 0.88. Fastenal Company has a 1-year low of $35.31 and a 1-year high of $50.63. The company has a 50 day moving average price of $45.27 and a 200 day moving average price of $43.93.

Fastenal (NASDAQ:FAST) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, January 20th. The company reported $0.26 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, meeting 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 for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $2.04 billion. During the same quarter in the prior year, the company earned $0.46 earnings per share. The firm’s revenue was up 11.1% on a year-over-year basis. On average, research analysts anticipate that Fastenal Company will post 2.15 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Fastenal Increases Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, February 26th. Stockholders of record on Thursday, January 29th were given a dividend of $0.24 per share. This represents a $0.96 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 2.2%. This is a boost from Fastenal’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.22. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Thursday, January 29th. Fastenal’s payout ratio is presently 87.27%.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In related news, Director Reyne K. Wisecup sold 36,920 shares of Fastenal stock in a transaction dated Thursday, March 5th. The stock was sold at an average price of $47.34, for a total value of $1,747,792.80. Following the transaction, the director owned 40,000 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $1,893,600. This trade represents a 48.00% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. Also, Director Scott Satterlee sold 15,964 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Friday, January 23rd. The stock was sold at an average price of $44.19, for a total value of $705,449.16. Following the sale, the director owned 50,000 shares in the company, valued at approximately $2,209,500. The trade was a 24.20% decrease in their position. Additional details regarding this sale are available in the official SEC disclosure. 0.28% of the stock is owned by insiders.

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.