Wilkins Investment Counsel Inc. Has $11.87 Million Stock Position in Fastenal (NASDAQ:FAST)

Wilkins Investment Counsel Inc. lowered its position in Fastenal (NASDAQ:FAST) by 6.7% in the fourth quarter, Holdings Channel.com reports. The institutional investor owned 165,012 shares of the company’s stock after selling 11,901 shares during the period. Fastenal makes up about 1.7% of Wilkins Investment Counsel Inc.’s portfolio, making the stock its 26th largest position. Wilkins Investment Counsel Inc.’s holdings in Fastenal were worth $11,866,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other large investors have also made changes to their positions in the company. OFI Invest Asset Management bought a new stake in shares of Fastenal in the 4th quarter valued at $46,000. Whipplewood Advisors LLC bought a new position in Fastenal during the 4th quarter worth about $49,000. SBI Securities Co. Ltd. bought a new position in Fastenal during the 4th quarter worth about $49,000. R Squared Ltd bought a new position in Fastenal during the 4th quarter worth about $68,000. Finally, Eastern Bank increased its holdings in Fastenal by 440.7% during the 4th quarter. Eastern Bank now owns 984 shares of the company’s stock worth $71,000 after purchasing an additional 802 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors own 81.38% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

FAST has been the subject of a number of research reports. Jefferies Financial Group increased their target price on Fastenal from $74.00 to $85.00 and gave the stock a “hold” rating in a report on Friday, December 6th. Hsbc Global Res cut Fastenal from a “hold” rating to a “moderate sell” rating in a report on Wednesday, December 11th. William Blair upgraded Fastenal from a “market perform” rating to an “outperform” rating in a report on Monday, March 10th. Wolfe Research increased their target price on Fastenal from $74.00 to $76.00 and gave the stock an “underweight” rating in a report on Thursday, January 16th. Finally, HSBC cut Fastenal from a “hold” rating to a “reduce” rating and set a $70.00 target price for the company. in a report on Wednesday, December 11th. Two equities research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, eight have issued a hold rating and two have issued a buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, Fastenal currently has an average rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $76.91.

Fastenal Trading Up 0.5 %

Shares of NASDAQ:FAST opened at $76.46 on Thursday. Fastenal has a 52-week low of $61.36 and a 52-week high of $84.88. The company has a market capitalization of $43.85 billion, a P/E ratio of 38.04, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 3.58 and a beta of 1.05. The company has a 50-day simple moving average of $74.97 and a 200 day simple moving average of $75.47. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.03, a quick ratio of 2.28 and a current ratio of 4.67.

Fastenal (NASDAQ:FAST) last issued its earnings results on Friday, January 17th. The company reported $0.46 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $0.48 by ($0.02). Fastenal had a net margin of 15.25% and a return on equity of 32.55%. The firm had revenue of $1.82 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $1.84 billion. During the same quarter last year, the business posted $0.46 earnings per share. The company’s revenue for the quarter was up 3.7% on a year-over-year basis. Sell-side analysts forecast that Fastenal will post 2.15 earnings per share for the current year.

Fastenal Increases Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, February 28th. Investors of record on Friday, January 31st were paid a $0.43 dividend. This is an increase from Fastenal’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.39. This represents a $1.72 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.25%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, January 31st. Fastenal’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 85.57%.

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.