BI Asset Management Fondsmaeglerselskab A S Sells 84,749 Shares of Fastenal Company $FAST

BI Asset Management Fondsmaeglerselskab A S reduced its stake in shares of Fastenal Company (NASDAQ:FAST) by 78.5% during the first quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm owned 23,234 shares of the company’s stock after selling 84,749 shares during the quarter. BI Asset Management Fondsmaeglerselskab A S’s holdings in Fastenal were worth $1,078,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently modified their holdings of the company. Norges Bank bought a new position in Fastenal in the fourth quarter worth $646,046,000. Wellington Management Group LLP boosted its stake in Fastenal by 243.5% during the fourth quarter. Wellington Management Group LLP now owns 12,095,194 shares of the company’s stock worth $485,380,000 after acquiring an additional 8,574,208 shares in the last quarter. Bank of America Corp DE grew its holdings in Fastenal by 106.1% in the second quarter. Bank of America Corp DE now owns 15,431,393 shares of the company’s stock worth $648,118,000 after purchasing an additional 7,943,217 shares during the period. Invesco Ltd. grew its holdings in Fastenal by 14.0% in the third quarter. Invesco Ltd. now owns 18,215,875 shares of the company’s stock worth $893,307,000 after purchasing an additional 2,242,116 shares during the period. Finally, Bank Julius Baer & Co. Ltd Zurich boosted its position in shares of Fastenal by 1,039.6% in the 4th quarter. Bank Julius Baer & Co. Ltd Zurich now owns 2,337,722 shares of the company’s stock worth $94,253,000 after purchasing an additional 2,132,593 shares in the last quarter. 81.38% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of equities analysts recently issued reports on the stock. JPMorgan Chase & Co. upped their price target on shares of Fastenal from $46.00 to $47.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research note on Thursday, April 9th. Robert W. Baird reduced their price objective 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. Raymond James Financial set a $48.00 target price on shares of Fastenal in a report on Thursday, March 5th. Bank of America boosted their price objective on shares of Fastenal from $48.00 to $55.00 in a report on Monday, April 13th. Finally, Sanford C. Bernstein reaffirmed an “underperform” rating and issued a $42.00 price objective on shares of Fastenal in a research report on Tuesday, April 14th. Five research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, seven have assigned a Hold rating and two have assigned a Sell rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $49.57.

Fastenal Stock Performance

Shares of FAST opened at $46.26 on Thursday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.03, a current ratio of 4.39 and a quick ratio of 2.34. Fastenal Company has a one year low of $38.97 and a one year high of $50.63. The firm has a market capitalization of $53.11 billion, a P/E ratio of 40.58, a PEG ratio of 2.90 and a beta of 0.73. The business has a fifty day moving average of $44.96 and a 200 day moving average of $44.56.

Fastenal (NASDAQ:FAST) last posted its earnings results on Monday, April 13th. The company reported $0.30 earnings per share for the quarter, meeting analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.30. Fastenal had a return on equity of 33.25% and a net margin of 15.39%.The company had revenue of $2.20 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $2.19 billion. During the same quarter in the prior year, the company earned $0.52 earnings per share. Fastenal’s revenue was up 12.4% on a year-over-year basis. As a group, sell-side analysts anticipate that Fastenal Company will post 1.23 EPS for the current year.

Fastenal Announces Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, May 26th. Stockholders of record on Tuesday, April 28th were given a dividend of $0.24 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Tuesday, April 28th. This represents a $0.96 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 2.1%. Fastenal’s payout ratio is presently 84.21%.

Fastenal Company 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.