IFM Investors Pty Ltd Increases Stock Position in Fastenal (NASDAQ:FAST)

IFM Investors Pty Ltd boosted its stake in Fastenal (NASDAQ:FAST) by 0.7% during the third quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the SEC. The institutional investor owned 112,769 shares of the company’s stock after buying an additional 735 shares during the quarter. IFM Investors Pty Ltd’s holdings in Fastenal were worth $8,054,000 as of its most recent filing with the SEC.

Other large investors have also recently bought and sold shares of the company. Aaron Wealth Advisors LLC acquired a new position in Fastenal in the third quarter valued at $310,000. BI Asset Management Fondsmaeglerselskab A S lifted its stake in shares of Fastenal by 98.6% in the 1st quarter. BI Asset Management Fondsmaeglerselskab A S now owns 118,301 shares of the company’s stock valued at $9,126,000 after purchasing an additional 58,726 shares in the last quarter. Empowered Funds LLC grew its holdings in shares of Fastenal by 205.4% during the 1st quarter. Empowered Funds LLC now owns 27,181 shares of the company’s stock worth $2,097,000 after purchasing an additional 18,281 shares during the period. Cetera Investment Advisers increased its position in Fastenal by 499.7% during the 1st quarter. Cetera Investment Advisers now owns 132,046 shares of the company’s stock worth $10,186,000 after purchasing an additional 110,027 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Nordea Investment Management AB raised its holdings in Fastenal by 7.2% in the first quarter. Nordea Investment Management AB now owns 1,371,825 shares of the company’s stock valued at $106,316,000 after buying an additional 91,754 shares during the period. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 81.38% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several research firms recently weighed in on FAST. Stifel Nicolaus restated a “buy” rating and set a $86.00 target price (up previously from $80.00) on shares of Fastenal in a report on Monday, October 14th. Jefferies Financial Group lowered their target price on Fastenal from $74.00 to $65.00 and set a “hold” rating for the company in a research note on Thursday, July 11th. Morgan Stanley raised their price objective on Fastenal from $72.00 to $76.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a research note on Monday, October 14th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. upped their target price on Fastenal from $57.00 to $63.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research report on Thursday, October 10th. Finally, Stephens raised their price target on shares of Fastenal from $56.00 to $75.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a research report on Monday, October 14th. Seven equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and two have issued a buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $73.33.

Insider Activity at Fastenal

In other Fastenal news, insider William Joseph Drazkowski sold 16,362 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Wednesday, October 16th. The stock was sold at an average price of $77.65, for a total transaction of $1,270,509.30. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider now owns 5,997 shares in the company, valued at approximately $465,667.05. The trade was a 0.00 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this link. In related news, CEO Daniel L. Florness sold 45,744 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, August 21st. The shares were sold at an average price of $68.14, for a total transaction of $3,116,996.16. Following the transaction, the chief executive officer now owns 286,018 shares in the company, valued at $19,489,266.52. This trade represents a 0.00 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through the SEC website. Also, insider William Joseph Drazkowski sold 16,362 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, October 16th. The stock was sold at an average price of $77.65, for a total value of $1,270,509.30. Following the completion of the sale, the insider now owns 5,997 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $465,667.05. This trade represents a 0.00 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold a total of 179,373 shares of company stock worth $13,029,308 in the last three months. 0.41% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

Fastenal Price Performance

Shares of NASDAQ FAST opened at $75.85 on Friday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.04, a current ratio of 4.39 and a quick ratio of 2.29. The firm has a market capitalization of $43.43 billion, a PE ratio of 37.74, a P/E/G ratio of 4.13 and a beta of 1.01. Fastenal has a 1-year low of $57.01 and a 1-year high of $79.04. The business’s fifty day moving average price is $70.74 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $68.04.

Fastenal (NASDAQ:FAST) last released its quarterly earnings data on Friday, October 11th. The company reported $0.52 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.51 by $0.01. The business had revenue of $1.91 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $1.90 billion. Fastenal had a net margin of 15.54% and a return on equity of 33.54%. The company’s revenue for the quarter was up 3.5% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter last year, the company earned $0.52 EPS. On average, research analysts expect that Fastenal will post 2.04 EPS for the current year.

Fastenal Announces Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, November 22nd. Stockholders of record on Friday, October 25th will be given a dividend of $0.39 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, October 25th. This represents a $1.56 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 2.06%. Fastenal’s dividend payout ratio is presently 77.61%.

Fastenal Profile

Fastenal Company, together with its subsidiaries, engages in the wholesale distribution of industrial and construction supplies in the United States, Canada, Mexico, North America, and internationally. It offers fasteners, and related industrial and construction supplies under the Fastenal name. The company’s fastener products include threaded fasteners, bolts, nuts, screws, studs, and related washers that are used in manufactured products and construction projects, as well as in the maintenance and repair of machines.