Geode Capital Management LLC Buys 685,047 Shares of Fastenal Company $FAST

Geode Capital Management LLC lifted its stake in Fastenal Company (NASDAQ:FAST) by 1.9% in the fourth quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm owned 37,699,836 shares of the company’s stock after acquiring an additional 685,047 shares during the quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC owned 3.28% of Fastenal worth $1,508,216,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission.

Other large investors have also recently made changes to their positions in the company. REAP Financial Group LLC bought a new stake in shares of Fastenal in the third quarter worth approximately $30,000. Elyxium Wealth LLC bought a new stake in shares of Fastenal in the fourth quarter worth approximately $25,000. Measured Wealth Private Client Group LLC bought a new stake in shares of Fastenal in the third quarter worth approximately $36,000. Field & Main Bank bought a new stake in shares of Fastenal in the fourth quarter worth approximately $30,000. Finally, Tucker Asset Management LLC bought a new stake in shares of Fastenal in the fourth quarter worth approximately $33,000. 81.38% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of brokerages have recently commented on FAST. Wolfe Research reduced their price target on shares of Fastenal from $46.00 to $45.00 and set an “underperform” rating for the company in a research note on Tuesday, April 14th. Sanford C. Bernstein reiterated an “underperform” rating and issued a $42.00 price target on shares of Fastenal in a research note on Tuesday, April 14th. Bank of America lifted their price target on shares of Fastenal from $48.00 to $55.00 in a research note on Monday, April 13th. Weiss Ratings reiterated a “buy (b-)” rating on shares of Fastenal in a research note on Friday, March 27th. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. lifted 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. Five analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, six have assigned a Hold rating and two have given a Sell rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, the stock currently has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $49.77.

Insider Transactions at Fastenal

In related news, Director Reyne K. Wisecup sold 36,920 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, March 5th. The shares were sold at an average price of $47.34, for a total transaction of $1,747,792.80. Following the completion of the sale, the director directly owned 40,000 shares in the company, valued at approximately $1,893,600. The trade was a 48.00% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Company insiders own 0.28% of the company’s stock.

Fastenal Stock Performance

Shares of NASDAQ FAST opened at $44.76 on Friday. The firm has a 50 day moving average of $44.98 and a 200 day moving average of $43.83. The company has a current ratio of 4.39, a quick ratio of 2.34 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.03. The firm has a market capitalization of $51.39 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 39.26, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.86 and a beta of 0.75. Fastenal Company has a 12-month low of $38.97 and a 12-month high of $50.63.

Fastenal (NASDAQ:FAST) last announced its earnings results on Monday, April 13th. The company reported $0.30 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, meeting the consensus estimate of $0.30. The company had revenue of $2.20 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $2.19 billion. Fastenal had a net margin of 15.39% and a return on equity of 33.25%. The firm’s quarterly revenue was up 12.4% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the previous year, the business posted $0.52 earnings per share. On average, research analysts anticipate that Fastenal Company will post 1.23 earnings per share for the current year.

Fastenal Dividend Announcement

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

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.