Fastenal Company $FAST Shares Bought by Associated Banc Corp

Associated Banc Corp lifted its position in shares of Fastenal Company (NASDAQ:FAST) by 95.7% during the second quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm owned 8,606 shares of the company’s stock after acquiring an additional 4,208 shares during the quarter. Associated Banc Corp’s holdings in Fastenal were worth $361,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other large investors have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Vanguard Group Inc. boosted its holdings in 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 purchasing an additional 75,852,223 shares in the last quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. raised its stake in shares of Fastenal by 103.4% during the 2nd quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. now owns 45,995,937 shares of the company’s stock worth $1,931,830,000 after buying an additional 23,380,022 shares in the last quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC lifted its holdings in shares of Fastenal by 103.8% in the 2nd quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 35,984,281 shares of the company’s stock valued at $1,506,141,000 after buying an additional 18,329,847 shares during the period. Bank of New York Mellon Corp boosted its stake in shares of Fastenal by 87.9% in the second quarter. Bank of New York Mellon Corp now owns 34,851,036 shares of the company’s stock valued at $1,463,743,000 after buying an additional 16,308,254 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Envestnet Asset Management Inc. grew its holdings in Fastenal by 103.5% during the second quarter. Envestnet Asset Management Inc. now owns 9,734,500 shares of the company’s stock worth $408,849,000 after acquiring an additional 4,950,503 shares during the period. 81.38% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of equities research analysts have commented on FAST shares. Wolfe Research raised Fastenal from an “underperform” rating to a “peer perform” rating and set a $43.00 target price for the company in a report on Thursday, November 13th. Robert W. Baird cut their price target on shares of Fastenal from $53.00 to $49.00 and set an “outperform” rating for the company in a report on Tuesday, October 14th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. boosted their price objective on shares of Fastenal from $41.00 to $46.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a report on Thursday, September 4th. Northcoast Research assumed coverage on shares of Fastenal in a research report on Thursday, August 21st. They set a “neutral” rating on the stock. Finally, Baird R W upgraded shares of Fastenal from a “hold” rating to a “strong-buy” rating in a report on Thursday, August 7th. One analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, three have assigned a Buy rating, nine have assigned a Hold rating and two have given a Sell rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, the company presently has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $46.32.

Fastenal Stock Performance

Shares of FAST opened at $40.09 on Wednesday. Fastenal Company has a 1 year low of $35.31 and a 1 year high of $50.63. The company’s 50 day simple moving average is $43.62 and its 200 day simple moving average is $44.42. The company has a market capitalization of $46.02 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 37.47, a PEG ratio of 3.75 and a beta of 0.92. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.03, a quick ratio of 2.19 and a current ratio of 4.26.

Fastenal (NASDAQ:FAST) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, October 14th. The company reported $0.29 EPS for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.30 by ($0.01). The company had revenue of $2.13 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $2.13 billion. Fastenal had a net margin of 15.34% and a return on equity of 32.69%. The company’s revenue was up 11.7% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the prior year, the company earned $0.26 EPS. On average, sell-side analysts predict that Fastenal Company will post 2.15 EPS for the current year.

Fastenal Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, November 25th. Investors of record on Tuesday, October 28th were issued a dividend of $0.22 per share. The ex-dividend date was Tuesday, October 28th. This represents a $0.88 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 2.2%. Fastenal’s payout ratio is presently 82.24%.

Insider Activity

In other Fastenal news, Director Hsenghung Sam Hsu bought 1,000 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Thursday, November 13th. The stock was bought at an average cost of $49.58 per share, for a total transaction of $49,580.00. Following the completion of the purchase, the director directly owned 10,000 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $495,800. The trade was a 11.11% increase in their ownership of the stock. The acquisition was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Also, Director Sarah N. Nielsen acquired 1,000 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Wednesday, November 19th. The shares were acquired at an average price of $39.60 per share, for a total transaction of $39,600.00. Following the completion of the acquisition, the director directly owned 5,000 shares in the company, valued at $198,000. The trade was a 25.00% increase in their ownership of the stock. The SEC filing for this purchase provides additional information. Insiders bought 3,000 shares of company stock valued at $131,630 in the last ninety days. Company insiders own 0.37% of the company’s stock.

Fastenal Company 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.