Securian Asset Management Inc. Cuts Stock Position in Fastenal Company $FAST

Securian Asset Management Inc. cut its holdings in shares of Fastenal Company (NASDAQ:FAST) by 43.7% during the fourth quarter, Holdings Channel.com reports. The institutional investor owned 31,217 shares of the company’s stock after selling 24,207 shares during the period. Securian Asset Management Inc.’s holdings in Fastenal were worth $1,253,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other hedge funds also recently bought and sold shares of the company. Vanguard Group Inc. raised its holdings in Fastenal by 1.6% in the third quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 151,515,539 shares of the company’s stock valued at $7,430,322,000 after acquiring an additional 2,346,045 shares in the last quarter. Invesco Ltd. grew its holdings in Fastenal by 14.0% during the 3rd quarter. Invesco Ltd. now owns 18,215,875 shares of the company’s stock worth $893,307,000 after acquiring an additional 2,242,116 shares in the last quarter. Bank of America Corp DE increased its position in shares of Fastenal by 1.1% in the 3rd quarter. Bank of America Corp DE now owns 15,604,974 shares of the company’s stock valued at $765,268,000 after purchasing an additional 173,581 shares during the last quarter. MIRAE ASSET GLOBAL ETFS HOLDINGS Ltd. lifted its position in shares of Fastenal by 0.3% during the 3rd quarter. MIRAE ASSET GLOBAL ETFS HOLDINGS Ltd. now owns 8,276,145 shares of the company’s stock worth $405,860,000 after purchasing an additional 26,702 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Franklin Resources Inc. lifted its position in shares of Fastenal by 1.2% during the 3rd quarter. Franklin Resources Inc. now owns 7,387,472 shares of the company’s stock worth $362,282,000 after purchasing an additional 90,095 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 81.38% of the company’s stock.

Fastenal Trading Up 0.0%

Shares of FAST opened at $43.32 on Wednesday. Fastenal Company has a twelve month low of $38.97 and a twelve month high of $50.63. The company has a current ratio of 4.39, a quick ratio of 2.34 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.03. The firm has a market capitalization of $49.73 billion, a P/E ratio of 38.00, a PEG ratio of 2.76 and a beta of 0.75. The firm’s 50-day moving average is $45.52 and its two-hundred day moving average is $43.63.

Fastenal (NASDAQ:FAST) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Monday, April 13th. The company reported $0.30 EPS for the quarter, hitting the consensus estimate of $0.30. Fastenal had a return on equity of 33.25% and a net margin of 15.39%.The business had revenue of $2.20 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $2.19 billion. During the same quarter in the previous year, the company earned $0.52 EPS. The company’s quarterly revenue was up 12.4% on a year-over-year basis. On average, research analysts predict that Fastenal Company will post 1.23 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Fastenal Announces Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, May 26th. Shareholders of record on Tuesday, April 28th will be issued a $0.24 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Tuesday, April 28th. This represents a $0.96 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.2%. Fastenal’s dividend payout ratio is 84.21%.

Insider Buying and Selling at Fastenal

In other news, Director Reyne K. Wisecup sold 36,920 shares of Fastenal stock in a transaction on Thursday, March 5th. The stock was 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 $1,893,600. The trade was a 48.00% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available through this hyperlink. 0.28% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

FAST has been the topic of several recent analyst reports. Morgan Stanley reissued a “positive” rating and issued a $45.00 target price on shares of Fastenal in a report on Thursday, March 5th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. upped their price objective on Fastenal from $46.00 to $47.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research report on Thursday, April 9th. UBS Group reiterated a “neutral” rating and issued a $46.00 price target on shares of Fastenal in a research note on Wednesday, January 21st. Robert W. Baird cut their target price on Fastenal from $52.00 to $50.00 and set an “outperform” rating on the stock in a research report on Tuesday, April 14th. Finally, Weiss Ratings reaffirmed a “buy (b-)” rating on shares of Fastenal in a report on Friday, March 27th. Five equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, six have given a Hold rating and two have assigned a Sell rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $49.77.

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.