Northwestern Mutual Wealth Management Co. Takes Position in Fastenal Company $FAST

Northwestern Mutual Wealth Management Co. bought a new position in shares of Fastenal Company (NASDAQ:FAST) in the second quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm bought 89,045 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $4,277,000.

Other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also modified their holdings of the company. Brighton Jones LLC bought a new stake in shares of Fastenal during the fourth quarter worth approximately $496,000. Integrated Wealth Concepts LLC lifted its holdings in Fastenal by 2.4% during the 1st quarter. Integrated Wealth Concepts LLC now owns 6,276 shares of the company’s stock worth $487,000 after purchasing an additional 147 shares during the last quarter. Quantbot Technologies LP bought a new stake in Fastenal in the 2nd quarter valued at $158,000. Jump Financial LLC bought a new stake in Fastenal in the 2nd quarter valued at $2,199,000. Finally, Cary Street Partners Financial LLC grew its holdings in Fastenal by 111.0% in the 2nd quarter. Cary Street Partners Financial LLC now owns 3,367 shares of the company’s stock valued at $141,000 after buying an additional 1,771 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors own 81.38% of the company’s stock.

Insider Transactions at Fastenal

In other news, Director Michael J. Ancius sold 3,000 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, July 28th. The shares were sold at an average price of $49.00, for a total value of $147,000.00. Following the sale, the director directly owned 58,690 shares in the company, valued at approximately $2,875,810. This trade represents a 4.86% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Also, Director Rita J. Heise sold 34,964 shares of Fastenal stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, August 5th. The shares were sold at an average price of $50.05, for a total transaction of $1,749,948.20. Following the sale, the director directly owned 20,000 shares in the company, valued at $1,001,000. This trade represents a 63.61% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale is available in the SEC filing. Insiders own 0.28% of the company’s stock.

Fastenal Price Performance

Shares of FAST opened at $51.26 on Monday. The firm has a 50 day simple moving average of $47.96 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $46.38. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.01, a current ratio of 4.18 and a quick ratio of 2.21. Fastenal Company has a one year low of $38.97 and a one year high of $52.92. The company has a market cap of $58.82 billion, a P/E ratio of 43.44, a P/E/G ratio of 3.20 and a beta of 0.72.

Fastenal (NASDAQ:FAST) last issued its earnings results on Tuesday, July 14th. The company reported $0.33 earnings per share for the quarter, meeting analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.33. Fastenal had a return on equity of 34.03% and a net margin of 15.45%.The firm had revenue of $2.39 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $2.34 billion. During the same quarter last year, the business posted $0.29 EPS. The company’s revenue was up 14.7% compared to the same quarter last year. Research analysts forecast that Fastenal Company will post 1.26 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Fastenal Increases Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, August 25th. Shareholders of record on Tuesday, July 28th will be given a $0.26 dividend. This is a boost from Fastenal’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.24. This represents a $1.04 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 2.0%. The ex-dividend date is Tuesday, July 28th. Fastenal’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 88.14%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of research firms have recently weighed in on FAST. Wolfe Research reissued an “underperform” rating and set a $47.00 target price on shares of Fastenal in a report on Thursday, July 9th. Robert W. Baird set a $54.00 price target on shares of Fastenal in a research note on Friday, August 7th. Rothschild & Co Redburn set a $55.00 price target on shares of Fastenal and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Monday, July 13th. Barclays dropped their price objective on shares of Fastenal from $47.00 to $46.00 and set an “equal weight” rating for the company in a research note on Thursday, July 16th. Finally, Weiss Ratings downgraded shares of Fastenal from a “buy (b)” rating to a “buy (b-)” rating in a report on Tuesday, July 21st. Five investment analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, five have assigned a Hold rating and two have given a Sell rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat, Fastenal has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $49.17.

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.