Fastenal (NASDAQ:FAST) Shares Sold by Northwest & Ethical Investments L.P.

Northwest & Ethical Investments L.P. reduced its stake in Fastenal (NASDAQ:FAST) by 4.6% in the 4th quarter, Holdings Channel reports. The institutional investor owned 4,139 shares of the company’s stock after selling 200 shares during the period. Northwest & Ethical Investments L.P.’s holdings in Fastenal were worth $297,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also modified their holdings of FAST. Blueshift Asset Management LLC acquired a new position in shares of Fastenal during the 4th quarter valued at about $246,000. Royal London Asset Management Ltd. raised its stake in Fastenal by 4.8% during the fourth quarter. Royal London Asset Management Ltd. now owns 384,029 shares of the company’s stock worth $27,616,000 after purchasing an additional 17,672 shares during the period. Harvest Fund Management Co. Ltd boosted its holdings in Fastenal by 41.5% in the 4th quarter. Harvest Fund Management Co. Ltd now owns 37,315 shares of the company’s stock valued at $2,597,000 after purchasing an additional 10,937 shares during the last quarter. Generali Asset Management SPA SGR purchased a new stake in shares of Fastenal in the 4th quarter valued at approximately $5,757,000. Finally, PDS Planning Inc acquired a new stake in shares of Fastenal during the 4th quarter worth approximately $218,000. 81.38% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Fastenal Trading Down 1.0 %

NASDAQ FAST opened at $74.73 on Friday. Fastenal has a one year low of $61.36 and a one year high of $84.88. The firm has a 50 day simple moving average of $75.08 and a 200-day simple moving average of $75.57. The firm has a market cap of $42.85 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 37.18, a PEG ratio of 3.58 and a beta of 1.05. 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 quarterly earnings results on Friday, January 17th. The company reported $0.46 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 business had revenue of $1.82 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $1.84 billion. During the same period in the prior year, the business earned $0.46 EPS. The business’s quarterly revenue was up 3.7% on a year-over-year basis. Equities research analysts anticipate that Fastenal will post 2.15 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Fastenal Increases Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, February 28th. Investors of record on Friday, January 31st were paid a dividend of $0.43 per share. This represents a $1.72 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.30%. This is a boost from Fastenal’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.39. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, January 31st. Fastenal’s payout ratio is presently 85.57%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several brokerages recently weighed in on FAST. Hsbc Global Res lowered Fastenal from a “hold” rating to a “moderate sell” rating in a research report on Wednesday, December 11th. Jefferies Financial Group increased their price target on Fastenal from $74.00 to $85.00 and gave the stock a “hold” rating in a report on Friday, December 6th. Stifel Nicolaus cut their price objective on Fastenal from $86.00 to $82.00 and set a “hold” rating for the company in a research report on Tuesday, January 21st. William Blair raised shares of Fastenal from a “market perform” rating to an “outperform” rating in a research report on Monday, March 10th. Finally, HSBC cut shares of Fastenal from a “hold” rating to a “reduce” rating and set a $70.00 price target for the company. in a research report on Wednesday, December 11th. Two analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, eight have issued a hold rating and two have assigned a buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, Fastenal presently has an average rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $76.91.

Fastenal 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.