Flossbach Von Storch AG Buys Shares of 50,648 Fastenal (NASDAQ:FAST)

Flossbach Von Storch AG bought a new stake in shares of Fastenal (NASDAQ:FAST) in the 4th quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the SEC. The firm bought 50,648 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $3,280,000.

Other hedge funds also recently modified their holdings of the company. Hartford Financial Management Inc. boosted its stake in shares of Fastenal by 46.9% during the 4th quarter. Hartford Financial Management Inc. now owns 479 shares of the company’s stock worth $31,000 after purchasing an additional 153 shares during the last quarter. Resurgent Financial Advisors LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Fastenal during the 4th quarter worth about $33,000. Harel Insurance Investments & Financial Services Ltd. acquired a new stake in shares of Fastenal in the fourth quarter worth approximately $35,000. Sunbelt Securities Inc. boosted its position in shares of Fastenal by 131.7% in the second quarter. Sunbelt Securities Inc. now owns 600 shares of the company’s stock worth $35,000 after acquiring an additional 341 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Quarry LP boosted its position in shares of Fastenal by 184.9% in the first quarter. Quarry LP now owns 678 shares of the company’s stock worth $37,000 after acquiring an additional 440 shares during the last quarter. 81.38% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several equities research analysts recently issued reports on the stock. Robert W. Baird decreased their target price on shares of Fastenal from $77.00 to $71.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a research report on Friday, April 12th. Stifel Nicolaus lifted their price target on shares of Fastenal from $75.00 to $85.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Monday, March 18th. HSBC lifted their price target on shares of Fastenal from $59.00 to $64.00 and gave the company a “hold” rating in a research report on Monday. Finally, Loop Capital dropped their price objective on shares of Fastenal from $71.00 to $66.00 and set a “hold” rating on the stock in a research note on Monday. Five investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and one has given a buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $67.67.

Fastenal Stock Down 0.4 %

Shares of NASDAQ FAST traded down $0.26 during trading on Thursday, reaching $68.22. 350,010 shares of the stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 4,023,435. The business’s 50-day moving average price is $73.70 and its 200 day moving average price is $66.20. Fastenal has a twelve month low of $52.28 and a twelve month high of $79.04. The company has a quick ratio of 2.49, a current ratio of 4.83 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.06. The company has a market capitalization of $39.04 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 33.90, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 3.59 and a beta of 1.05.

Fastenal (NASDAQ:FAST) last posted its earnings results on Thursday, April 11th. The company reported $0.52 EPS for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.53 by ($0.01). The firm had revenue of $1.90 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $1.91 billion. Fastenal had a return on equity of 33.98% and a net margin of 15.68%. The company’s revenue for the quarter was up 1.9% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the previous year, the firm posted $0.52 earnings per share. As a group, equities analysts forecast that Fastenal will post 2.13 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Fastenal Announces Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, May 23rd. Investors of record on Thursday, April 25th will be issued a $0.39 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Wednesday, April 24th. This represents a $1.56 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.29%. Fastenal’s dividend payout ratio is presently 77.23%.

Insider Activity at Fastenal

In related news, insider William Joseph Drazkowski sold 11,968 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Thursday, January 25th. The shares were sold at an average price of $69.10, for a total value of $826,988.80. Following the sale, the insider now directly owns 5,997 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $414,392.70. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this hyperlink. In other Fastenal news, insider William Joseph Drazkowski sold 11,968 shares of the stock in a transaction on Thursday, January 25th. The shares were sold at an average price of $69.10, for a total transaction of $826,988.80. Following the sale, the insider now directly owns 5,997 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $414,392.70. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Also, Director Reyne K. Wisecup sold 34,042 shares of the stock in a transaction on Friday, January 19th. The stock was sold at an average price of $68.48, for a total transaction of $2,331,196.16. Following the sale, the director now directly owns 20,000 shares in the company, valued at $1,369,600. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold 105,682 shares of company stock valued at $7,375,853 over the last ninety days. Corporate insiders own 0.41% of the company’s stock.

Fastenal Company Profile

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.