Commerzbank Aktiengesellschaft FI Boosts Position in Fastenal Company $FAST

Commerzbank Aktiengesellschaft FI boosted its stake in shares of Fastenal Company (NASDAQ:FAST) by 603.2% in the third quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor owned 39,422 shares of the company’s stock after buying an additional 33,816 shares during the quarter. Commerzbank Aktiengesellschaft FI’s holdings in Fastenal were worth $1,934,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other hedge funds have also added to or reduced their stakes in FAST. Vanguard Group Inc. boosted its holdings in shares of Fastenal by 103.5% in the second 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 during the period. State Street Corp raised its position in Fastenal by 99.6% during the 2nd quarter. State Street Corp now owns 54,317,385 shares of the company’s stock valued at $2,281,330,000 after purchasing an additional 27,107,520 shares in the last quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. lifted its holdings in shares of Fastenal by 103.4% in 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 during the period. Geode Capital Management LLC grew its position in shares of Fastenal by 103.8% during the 2nd quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 35,984,281 shares of the company’s stock worth $1,506,141,000 after buying an additional 18,329,847 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Bank of New York Mellon Corp grew its position in shares of Fastenal by 87.9% during the 2nd quarter. Bank of New York Mellon Corp now owns 34,851,036 shares of the company’s stock worth $1,463,743,000 after buying an additional 16,308,254 shares in the last quarter. 81.38% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Analyst Ratings Changes

FAST has been the subject of a number of research reports. Weiss Ratings reaffirmed a “buy (b-)” rating on shares of Fastenal in a research note on Monday, December 29th. Sanford C. Bernstein reaffirmed an “underperform” rating on shares of Fastenal in a research report on Wednesday. Barclays set a $43.00 price objective on shares of Fastenal and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a research note on Wednesday. Jefferies Financial Group set a $52.00 price objective on shares of Fastenal and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Monday, December 15th. Finally, Robert W. Baird lowered their target price on Fastenal from $53.00 to $49.00 and set an “outperform” rating for the company in a report on Tuesday, October 14th. Four investment analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, seven have given a Hold rating and two have given a Sell rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, Fastenal currently has an average rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $48.00.

Fastenal Stock Performance

Shares of FAST stock opened at $43.89 on Monday. Fastenal Company has a 12-month low of $35.31 and a 12-month high of $50.63. The business’s fifty day simple moving average is $41.47 and its 200-day simple moving average is $44.46. The company has a current ratio of 4.85, a quick ratio of 2.41 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.03. The company has a market cap of $50.39 billion, a PE ratio of 39.90, a PEG ratio of 2.81 and a beta of 0.90.

Fastenal (NASDAQ:FAST) last released its earnings results on Tuesday, January 20th. The company reported $0.26 earnings per share for the quarter, hitting the consensus estimate of $0.26. The company had revenue of $2.03 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $2.04 billion. Fastenal had a net margin of 15.35% and a return on equity of 32.83%. Fastenal’s revenue was up 11.1% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the previous year, the firm earned $0.46 EPS. Analysts expect that Fastenal Company will post 2.15 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Fastenal Increases Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, February 26th. Stockholders of record on Thursday, January 29th will be issued a $0.24 dividend. This is a boost from Fastenal’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.22. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Thursday, January 29th. This represents a $0.96 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 2.2%. Fastenal’s payout ratio is presently 80.00%.

Insider Transactions at Fastenal

In other Fastenal news, Director Hsenghung Sam Hsu bought 1,000 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Thursday, November 13th. The shares were purchased at an average price of $49.58 per share, for a total transaction of $49,580.00. Following the transaction, the director directly owned 10,000 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $495,800. This represents a 11.11% increase in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available through the SEC website. Also, Director Sarah N. Nielsen purchased 1,000 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, November 19th. The stock was bought at an average cost of $39.60 per share, with a total value of $39,600.00. Following the acquisition, the director owned 5,000 shares in the company, valued at $198,000. This represents a 25.00% increase in their position. The SEC filing for this purchase provides additional information. 0.37% of the stock is owned by corporate 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.