MUFG Securities EMEA plc Buys 25,135 Shares of Fastenal Company $FAST

MUFG Securities EMEA plc lifted its stake in shares of Fastenal Company (NASDAQ:FAST) by 114.4% during the fourth quarter, Holdings Channel.com reports. The firm owned 47,102 shares of the company’s stock after acquiring an additional 25,135 shares during the period. MUFG Securities EMEA plc’s holdings in Fastenal were worth $1,890,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other large investors also recently made changes to their positions in the company. Norges Bank bought a new stake in Fastenal in the 4th quarter valued at about $646,046,000. Bank of America Corp DE raised 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. grew its stake 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 during the period. Invesco Ltd. grew its stake in Fastenal by 14.0% in the third quarter. Invesco Ltd. now owns 18,215,875 shares of the company’s stock valued at $893,307,000 after acquiring an additional 2,242,116 shares during the period. Finally, Bank Julius Baer & Co. Ltd Zurich grew its stake in Fastenal by 1,039.6% in the fourth quarter. Bank Julius Baer & Co. Ltd Zurich now owns 2,337,722 shares of the company’s stock valued at $94,253,000 after acquiring an additional 2,132,593 shares during the period. 81.38% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other Fastenal news, Director Reyne K. Wisecup sold 36,920 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Thursday, March 5th. The shares were sold at an average price of $47.34, for a total value of $1,747,792.80. Following the completion of the sale, the director directly owned 40,000 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $1,893,600. This represents a 48.00% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is accessible through the SEC website. Company insiders own 0.28% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several equities research analysts have recently commented on FAST shares. 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. Morgan Stanley reiterated a “positive” rating and issued a $45.00 target price on shares of Fastenal in a report on Thursday, March 5th. Barclays lifted their price target on shares of Fastenal from $44.00 to $45.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a research report on Thursday, April 16th. Weiss Ratings reaffirmed a “buy (b-)” rating on shares of Fastenal in a research note on Friday, March 27th. Finally, Raymond James Financial set a $48.00 price objective on shares of Fastenal in a report on Thursday, March 5th. Five equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, six have assigned a Hold rating and two have assigned a Sell rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company has an average rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $49.77.

Fastenal Trading Down 0.5%

NASDAQ FAST opened at $43.99 on Tuesday. 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 business has a fifty day simple moving average of $44.95 and a 200 day simple moving average of $43.87. Fastenal Company has a 12 month low of $38.97 and a 12 month high of $50.63. The firm has a market capitalization of $50.50 billion, a P/E ratio of 38.59, a PEG ratio of 2.82 and a beta of 0.73.

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

Fastenal Dividend Announcement

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, May 26th. Investors of record on Tuesday, April 28th were issued a dividend of $0.24 per share. The ex-dividend date was Tuesday, April 28th. This represents a $0.96 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.2%. Fastenal’s payout ratio is 84.21%.

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.