Nordea Investment Management AB Decreases Stock Holdings in Fastenal Company $FAST

Nordea Investment Management AB trimmed its position in shares of Fastenal Company (NASDAQ:FAST) by 8.3% during the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the SEC. The institutional investor owned 3,405,900 shares of the company’s stock after selling 307,569 shares during the quarter. Nordea Investment Management AB owned approximately 0.30% of Fastenal worth $137,820,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other hedge funds have also made changes to their positions in FAST. State Street Corp increased its stake in shares of Fastenal by 99.6% during the 2nd quarter. State Street Corp now owns 54,317,385 shares of the company’s stock worth $2,281,330,000 after purchasing an additional 27,107,520 shares in the last quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. lifted its stake in Fastenal by 103.4% in the 2nd quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. now owns 45,995,937 shares of the company’s stock valued at $1,931,830,000 after buying an additional 23,380,022 shares in the last quarter. Norges Bank purchased a new stake in Fastenal in the 2nd quarter valued at approximately $638,648,000. Invesco Ltd. grew its holdings in Fastenal by 141.9% during the 2nd quarter. Invesco Ltd. now owns 15,973,759 shares of the company’s stock valued at $670,898,000 after buying an additional 9,370,909 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Bank of America Corp DE boosted its stake in shares of Fastenal by 106.1% during the 2nd 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 last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 81.38% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of equities analysts have recently weighed in on FAST shares. Benchmark reissued a “buy” rating on shares of Fastenal in a research report on Thursday, March 5th. Morgan Stanley reiterated a “positive” rating and issued a $45.00 target price on shares of Fastenal in a report on Thursday, March 5th. Raymond James Financial set a $48.00 price objective on Fastenal in a research report on Thursday, March 5th. Weiss Ratings reaffirmed a “buy (b-)” rating on shares of Fastenal in a research report on Monday, December 29th. Finally, Barclays lifted their target price on Fastenal from $43.00 to $44.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a research report on Friday, March 6th. Five investment analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, six have given a Hold rating and two have issued a Sell rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock currently has an average rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $48.83.

Fastenal Stock Performance

Shares of FAST stock opened at $43.76 on Monday. The company has a market cap of $50.25 billion, a P/E ratio of 39.78, a PEG ratio of 2.79 and a beta of 0.88. The business has a 50 day moving average of $45.27 and a two-hundred day moving average of $43.93. Fastenal Company has a 52 week low of $35.31 and a 52 week high of $50.63. The company has a quick ratio of 2.41, a current ratio of 4.85 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.03.

Fastenal (NASDAQ:FAST) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, January 20th. The company reported $0.26 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, hitting the consensus estimate of $0.26. Fastenal had a return on equity of 32.83% and a net margin of 15.35%.The business had revenue of $2.03 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $2.04 billion. During the same quarter last year, the business posted $0.46 EPS. The business’s revenue was up 11.1% on a year-over-year basis. As a group, analysts anticipate that Fastenal Company will post 2.15 EPS for the current year.

Fastenal Increases Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, February 26th. Shareholders of record on Thursday, January 29th were paid a $0.24 dividend. The ex-dividend date was Thursday, January 29th. This is a positive change from Fastenal’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.22. This represents a $0.96 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 2.2%. Fastenal’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 87.27%.

Insider Buying and Selling at Fastenal

In other news, Director Reyne K. Wisecup sold 36,920 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction 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 transaction, the director owned 40,000 shares of the company’s stock, 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 legal filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Also, Director Scott Satterlee sold 15,964 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Friday, January 23rd. The stock was sold at an average price of $44.19, for a total transaction of $705,449.16. Following the transaction, the director owned 50,000 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $2,209,500. This represents a 24.20% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale is available in the SEC filing. Insiders own 0.28% of the company’s stock.

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.