Fastenal Company $FAST Shares Acquired by Assenagon Asset Management S.A.

Assenagon Asset Management S.A. raised its position in shares of Fastenal Company (NASDAQ:FAST) by 20.2% during the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm owned 328,263 shares of the company’s stock after purchasing an additional 55,191 shares during the quarter. Assenagon Asset Management S.A.’s holdings in Fastenal were worth $13,173,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other hedge funds also recently modified their holdings of the business. Dudley & Shanley Inc. bought a new stake in Fastenal during the fourth quarter worth approximately $287,000. Diversified Trust Co. boosted its stake in Fastenal by 47.8% during the 4th quarter. Diversified Trust Co. now owns 32,721 shares of the company’s stock valued at $1,313,000 after purchasing an additional 10,577 shares during the period. TABR Capital Management LLC acquired a new stake in Fastenal in the 4th quarter valued at approximately $325,000. Wealth Enhancement Advisory Services LLC increased its position in Fastenal by 56.0% in the 4th quarter. Wealth Enhancement Advisory Services LLC now owns 1,474,717 shares of the company’s stock worth $61,273,000 after buying an additional 529,606 shares during the period. Finally, NorthCrest Asset Manangement LLC increased its position in Fastenal by 31.0% in the 4th quarter. NorthCrest Asset Manangement LLC now owns 34,760 shares of the company’s stock worth $1,430,000 after buying an additional 8,230 shares during the period. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 81.38% of the company’s stock.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of analysts have recently issued reports on the company. Morgan Stanley restated a “positive” rating and set a $45.00 price objective on shares of Fastenal in a research report on Thursday, March 5th. Weiss Ratings reiterated a “buy (b-)” rating on shares of Fastenal in a research note on Monday, December 29th. Sanford C. Bernstein restated an “underperform” rating on shares of Fastenal in a research note on Wednesday, January 21st. Wolfe Research increased their price objective on Fastenal from $42.00 to $43.00 and gave the stock an “underperform” rating in a research note on Friday, February 27th. Finally, Barclays boosted their target price on shares of Fastenal from $43.00 to $44.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a research note on Friday, March 6th. Five equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, six have given a Hold rating and two have given a Sell rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, the company has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $48.83.

Fastenal Trading Down 0.4%

NASDAQ FAST opened at $44.95 on Friday. Fastenal Company has a 52 week low of $35.31 and a 52 week high of $50.63. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.03, a quick ratio of 2.41 and a current ratio of 4.85. The stock’s 50 day moving average price is $45.49 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $43.87. The stock has a market capitalization of $51.62 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 40.86, a PEG ratio of 2.86 and a beta of 0.88.

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

Fastenal Increases Dividend

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

Insider Transactions at Fastenal

In related news, Director Scott Satterlee sold 15,964 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Friday, January 23rd. The shares were sold at an average price of $44.19, for a total value of $705,449.16. Following the completion of the sale, the director directly owned 50,000 shares in the company, valued at approximately $2,209,500. This trade represents a 24.20% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is accessible through the SEC website. Also, Director Reyne K. Wisecup sold 36,920 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated 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 in the company, valued at approximately $1,893,600. This trade represents a 48.00% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale is available in the SEC filing. Corporate insiders own 0.28% of the company’s stock.

Fastenal 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.