Fastenal Company $FAST Stake Lifted by Skandinaviska Enskilda Banken AB publ

Skandinaviska Enskilda Banken AB publ boosted its stake in Fastenal Company (NASDAQ:FAST) by 40.7% during the 2nd quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm owned 239,906 shares of the company’s stock after buying an additional 69,435 shares during the period. Skandinaviska Enskilda Banken AB publ’s holdings in Fastenal were worth $10,076,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors also recently modified their holdings of the company. Neuberger Berman Group LLC boosted its holdings in shares of Fastenal by 112.8% during the second quarter. Neuberger Berman Group LLC now owns 88,153 shares of the company’s stock valued at $3,702,000 after acquiring an additional 46,737 shares during the period. Virtus Investment Advisers LLC lifted its position in Fastenal by 80.7% in the 2nd quarter. Virtus Investment Advisers LLC now owns 34,327 shares of the company’s stock valued at $1,442,000 after purchasing an additional 15,330 shares during the last quarter. Colonial Trust Advisors boosted its stake in Fastenal by 107.1% during the 2nd quarter. Colonial Trust Advisors now owns 6,088 shares of the company’s stock valued at $256,000 after purchasing an additional 3,149 shares during the period. F m Investments LLC boosted its stake in Fastenal by 89.8% during the 2nd quarter. F m Investments LLC now owns 62,274 shares of the company’s stock valued at $2,615,000 after purchasing an additional 29,467 shares during the period. Finally, Norges Bank bought a new position in Fastenal in the 2nd quarter worth about $638,648,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 81.38% of the company’s stock.

Insider Activity

In other Fastenal news, Director Hsenghung Sam Hsu bought 1,000 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, November 13th. The stock was acquired at an average cost of $49.58 per share, with a total value of $49,580.00. Following the completion of the purchase, the director directly owned 10,000 shares in the company, valued at approximately $495,800. This trade represents a 11.11% increase in their ownership of the stock. The purchase was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available through this link. Also, Director Sarah N. Nielsen purchased 1,000 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Wednesday, November 19th. The stock was acquired at an average price of $39.60 per share, for a total transaction of $39,600.00. Following the transaction, the director owned 5,000 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $198,000. The trade was a 25.00% increase in their position. Additional details regarding this purchase are available in the official SEC disclosure. In the last 90 days, insiders have bought 3,000 shares of company stock valued at $131,630. Insiders own 0.37% of the company’s stock.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of equities research analysts have recently weighed in on the company. Baird R W raised Fastenal from a “hold” rating to a “strong-buy” rating in a report on Thursday, August 7th. Wolfe Research raised Fastenal from an “underperform” rating to a “peer perform” rating and set a $43.00 target price on the stock in a research note on Thursday, November 13th. Robert W. Baird decreased their price target on Fastenal from $53.00 to $49.00 and set an “outperform” rating for the company in a research note on Tuesday, October 14th. Sanford C. Bernstein started coverage on Fastenal in a report on Tuesday, November 11th. They set an “underperform” rating and a $38.00 price target on the stock. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. lifted their price objective on shares of Fastenal from $41.00 to $46.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research note on Thursday, September 4th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, three have issued a Buy rating, nine have assigned a Hold rating and two have assigned a Sell rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock presently has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $46.32.

Fastenal Stock Performance

Shares of NASDAQ FAST opened at $40.42 on Friday. Fastenal Company has a 1 year low of $35.31 and a 1 year high of $50.63. The firm has a market cap of $46.40 billion, a P/E ratio of 37.77, a PEG ratio of 3.75 and a beta of 0.92. The stock has a fifty day moving average price of $43.20 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $44.39. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.03, a quick ratio of 2.19 and a current ratio of 4.26.

Fastenal (NASDAQ:FAST) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, October 14th. The company reported $0.29 earnings per share for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $0.30 by ($0.01). Fastenal had a net margin of 15.34% and a return on equity of 32.69%. The firm had revenue of $2.13 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $2.13 billion. During the same quarter last year, the company earned $0.26 EPS. The company’s quarterly revenue was up 11.7% compared to the same quarter last year. Research analysts forecast that Fastenal Company will post 2.15 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Fastenal Announces Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, November 25th. Shareholders of record on Tuesday, October 28th were issued a $0.22 dividend. This represents a $0.88 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 2.2%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Tuesday, October 28th. Fastenal’s dividend payout ratio is presently 82.24%.

About Fastenal

Fastenal Company, together with its subsidiaries, engages in the wholesale distribution of industrial and construction supplies in the United States, Canada, Mexico, North America, and internationally. It offers fasteners, and related industrial and construction supplies under the Fastenal name. The company’s fastener products include threaded fasteners, bolts, nuts, screws, studs, and related washers that are used in manufactured products and construction projects, as well as in the maintenance and repair of machines.