VIRGINIA RETIREMENT SYSTEMS ET Al Has $43.71 Million Stock Holdings in Fastenal Company $FAST

VIRGINIA RETIREMENT SYSTEMS ET Al trimmed its position in Fastenal Company (NASDAQ:FAST) by 15.9% in the third quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm owned 891,284 shares of the company’s stock after selling 168,300 shares during the quarter. VIRGINIA RETIREMENT SYSTEMS ET Al owned approximately 0.08% of Fastenal worth $43,709,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Brighton Jones LLC bought a new position in shares of Fastenal in the 4th quarter valued at about $496,000. MAI Capital Management lifted its holdings in Fastenal by 4.9% in the first quarter. MAI Capital Management now owns 12,357 shares of the company’s stock valued at $958,000 after buying an additional 572 shares during the period. Flputnam Investment Management Co. lifted its holdings in Fastenal by 22.3% in the first quarter. Flputnam Investment Management Co. now owns 7,890 shares of the company’s stock valued at $612,000 after buying an additional 1,439 shares during the period. Focus Partners Advisor Solutions LLC boosted its stake in Fastenal by 19.1% in the first quarter. Focus Partners Advisor Solutions LLC now owns 13,953 shares of the company’s stock valued at $1,082,000 after acquiring an additional 2,238 shares during the last quarter. Finally, 1248 Management LLC acquired a new stake in Fastenal during the 1st quarter worth $36,000. 81.38% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several brokerages have commented on FAST. Barclays dropped their target price on shares of Fastenal from $45.00 to $44.00 and set an “equal weight” rating for the company in a research report on Thursday, November 13th. Sanford C. Bernstein reiterated an “underperform” rating on shares of Fastenal in a report on Monday. Weiss Ratings reissued a “buy (b-)” rating on shares of Fastenal in a research note on Monday. Robert W. Baird reduced their target price on Fastenal from $53.00 to $49.00 and set an “outperform” rating on the stock in a report on Tuesday, October 14th. Finally, Jefferies Financial Group set a $52.00 target price on Fastenal and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Monday, December 15th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, five have given a Buy rating, eight have assigned a Hold rating and one has given a Sell rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has an average rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $48.73.

Fastenal Trading Down 1.0%

NASDAQ FAST opened at $40.87 on Wednesday. Fastenal Company has a one year low of $35.31 and a one year high of $50.63. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.03, a current ratio of 4.26 and a quick ratio of 2.19. The firm has a market cap of $46.92 billion, a P/E ratio of 38.20, a P/E/G ratio of 3.30 and a beta of 0.89. The stock’s 50-day moving average is $41.18 and its 200-day moving average is $44.43.

Fastenal (NASDAQ:FAST) last posted its earnings results on Tuesday, October 14th. The company reported $0.29 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.30 by ($0.01). The business had revenue of $2.13 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $2.13 billion. Fastenal had a return on equity of 32.69% and a net margin of 15.34%.Fastenal’s revenue for the quarter was up 11.7% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the previous year, the company posted $0.26 earnings per share. Sell-side analysts anticipate that Fastenal Company will post 2.15 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Fastenal Dividend Announcement

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, November 25th. Stockholders of record on Tuesday, October 28th were given a dividend of $0.22 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Tuesday, October 28th. This represents a $0.88 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 2.2%. Fastenal’s dividend payout ratio is currently 82.24%.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other news, Director Hsenghung Sam Hsu bought 1,000 shares of the stock in a transaction on Thursday, November 13th. The stock was purchased at an average price of $49.58 per share, for a total transaction of $49,580.00. Following the acquisition, the director 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 transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which can be accessed through this link. Also, Director Sarah N. Nielsen purchased 1,000 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, November 19th. The stock was purchased at an average price of $39.60 per share, for a total transaction of $39,600.00. Following the completion of the acquisition, the director owned 5,000 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $198,000. This represents a 25.00% increase in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this purchase is available in the SEC filing. Over the last 90 days, insiders have purchased 3,000 shares of company stock worth $131,630. 0.37% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

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.