Fjarde AP Fonden Fourth Swedish National Pension Fund Reduces Stock Holdings in Fastenal Company $FAST

Fjarde AP Fonden Fourth Swedish National Pension Fund reduced its stake in shares of Fastenal Company (NASDAQ:FAST) by 8.6% during the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the SEC. The firm owned 290,035 shares of the company’s stock after selling 27,200 shares during the quarter. Fjarde AP Fonden Fourth Swedish National Pension Fund’s holdings in Fastenal were worth $11,639,000 as of its most recent filing with the SEC.

Several other hedge funds have also modified their holdings of FAST. Norges Bank purchased a new stake in Fastenal during the 4th quarter worth $646,046,000. Bank of America Corp DE increased its stake in 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 buying an additional 7,943,217 shares during the period. Vanguard Group Inc. increased its stake in Fastenal by 1.6% during the 3rd quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 151,515,539 shares of the company’s stock worth $7,430,322,000 after buying an additional 2,346,045 shares during the period. Invesco Ltd. increased its stake 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 buying an additional 2,242,116 shares during the period. Finally, Bank Julius Baer & Co. Ltd Zurich increased its stake in Fastenal by 1,039.6% during the 4th quarter. Bank Julius Baer & Co. Ltd Zurich now owns 2,337,722 shares of the company’s stock worth $94,253,000 after buying an additional 2,132,593 shares during the period. 81.38% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Fastenal Price Performance

FAST opened at $46.79 on Friday. The company has a 50-day moving average of $45.08 and a 200-day moving average of $44.00. The company has a market capitalization of $53.72 billion, a P/E ratio of 41.04, a PEG ratio of 2.98 and a beta of 0.73. Fastenal Company has a 1-year low of $38.97 and a 1-year high of $50.63. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.03, a quick ratio of 2.34 and a current ratio of 4.39.

Fastenal (NASDAQ:FAST) last released its earnings results on Monday, April 13th. The company reported $0.30 earnings per share for the quarter, hitting the consensus estimate of $0.30. The company had revenue of $2.20 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $2.19 billion. Fastenal had a net margin of 15.39% and a return on equity of 33.25%. The company’s revenue was up 12.4% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the previous year, the firm earned $0.52 EPS. Equities analysts expect that Fastenal Company will post 1.24 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Fastenal Announces Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, May 26th. Stockholders of record on Tuesday, April 28th were issued a $0.24 dividend. This represents a $0.96 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 2.1%. The ex-dividend date was Tuesday, April 28th. Fastenal’s payout ratio is 84.21%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several research firms recently issued reports on FAST. JPMorgan Chase & Co. lifted their price target on shares of Fastenal from $46.00 to $47.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research note on Thursday, April 9th. Benchmark restated a “buy” rating on shares of Fastenal in a report on Thursday, March 5th. Sanford C. Bernstein restated an “underperform” rating and set a $42.00 price objective on shares of Fastenal in a report on Tuesday, April 14th. Raymond James Financial set a $48.00 price objective on Fastenal in a report on Thursday, March 5th. Finally, Weiss Ratings restated a “buy (b-)” rating on shares of Fastenal in a report on Friday, March 27th. Five analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, six have assigned a Hold rating and two have given a Sell rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, Fastenal presently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $49.85.

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.