Banco Bilbao Vizcaya Argentaria S.A. Has $10.14 Million Stake in Fastenal Company $FAST

Banco Bilbao Vizcaya Argentaria S.A. grew its holdings in Fastenal Company (NASDAQ:FAST) by 747.0% during the third quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the SEC. The institutional investor owned 206,676 shares of the company’s stock after purchasing an additional 182,275 shares during the quarter. Banco Bilbao Vizcaya Argentaria S.A.’s holdings in Fastenal were worth $10,135,000 as of its most recent filing with the SEC.

Several other large investors also recently made changes to their positions in the business. Vanguard Group Inc. raised its stake in shares of Fastenal by 1.6% in the third quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 151,515,539 shares of the company’s stock worth $7,430,322,000 after acquiring an additional 2,346,045 shares during the last quarter. National Pension Service grew its stake in shares of Fastenal by 3.6% during the third quarter. National Pension Service now owns 1,558,579 shares of the company’s stock valued at $76,433,000 after purchasing an additional 53,888 shares during the last quarter. Nordea Investment Management AB grew its stake in shares of Fastenal by 6.3% during the third quarter. Nordea Investment Management AB now owns 3,713,469 shares of the company’s stock valued at $181,626,000 after purchasing an additional 219,154 shares during the last quarter. Fifth Third Wealth Advisors LLC increased its holdings in shares of Fastenal by 7,923.2% in the third quarter. Fifth Third Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 1,268,795 shares of the company’s stock valued at $62,222,000 after purchasing an additional 1,252,981 shares in the last quarter. Finally, BlueStem Wealth Partners LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Fastenal in the third quarter valued at approximately $634,000. Institutional investors own 81.38% of the company’s stock.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In related news, 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 value of $705,449.16. Following the completion of the sale, the director owned 50,000 shares in the company, valued at approximately $2,209,500. This represents a 24.20% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which can be accessed through this link. Also, Director Reyne K. Wisecup sold 36,920 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Thursday, March 5th. The shares were sold at an average price of $47.34, for a total value of $1,747,792.80. Following the completion of the transaction, the director directly owned 40,000 shares in the company, valued at $1,893,600. The trade was a 48.00% decrease in their position. Additional details regarding this sale are available in the official SEC disclosure. 0.28% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

FAST has been the topic of several research reports. Robert W. Baird upped their price objective on Fastenal from $51.00 to $52.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a report on Friday, March 6th. Wolfe Research lifted their target price on Fastenal from $42.00 to $43.00 and gave the company an “underperform” rating in a research note on Friday, February 27th. Jefferies Financial Group set a $52.00 target price on Fastenal and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Monday, December 15th. Sanford C. Bernstein restated an “underperform” rating on shares of Fastenal in a research report on Wednesday, January 21st. Finally, Barclays raised their price target on Fastenal from $43.00 to $44.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a report on Friday, March 6th. Five research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, six have given a Hold rating and two have issued a Sell rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, Fastenal has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $48.83.

Fastenal Trading Up 0.5%

Shares of NASDAQ FAST opened at $45.46 on Monday. Fastenal Company has a fifty-two week low of $35.31 and a fifty-two week high of $50.63. The firm has a market capitalization of $52.20 billion, a P/E ratio of 41.33, a P/E/G ratio of 2.90 and a beta of 0.88. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.03, a current ratio of 4.85 and a quick ratio of 2.41. The company’s 50 day simple moving average is $44.91 and its 200 day simple moving average is $44.10.

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

Fastenal Increases Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, February 26th. Investors of record on Thursday, January 29th were paid a dividend of $0.24 per share. This represents a $0.96 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 2.1%. This is a boost from Fastenal’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.22. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Thursday, January 29th. Fastenal’s payout ratio is presently 87.27%.

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.