Kentucky Retirement Systems Lowers Stock Holdings in Fastenal Company $FAST

Kentucky Retirement Systems lowered its position in Fastenal Company (NASDAQ:FAST) by 68.7% in the 1st quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the SEC. The firm owned 22,540 shares of the company’s stock after selling 49,532 shares during the period. Kentucky Retirement Systems’ holdings in Fastenal were worth $1,071,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other institutional investors have also bought and sold shares of FAST. State Street Corp boosted its stake in shares of Fastenal by 1.2% in the fourth quarter. State Street Corp now owns 54,734,674 shares of the company’s stock worth $2,196,502,000 after acquiring an additional 631,889 shares during the period. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. grew its position in shares of Fastenal by 2.0% during the fourth quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. now owns 47,297,047 shares of the company’s stock worth $1,898,031,000 after purchasing an additional 919,158 shares in the last quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC raised its stake in Fastenal by 1.9% during the 4th quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 37,699,836 shares of the company’s stock valued at $1,508,216,000 after purchasing an additional 685,047 shares during the period. Invesco Ltd. raised its stake in Fastenal by 14.0% during the 3rd quarter. Invesco Ltd. now owns 18,215,875 shares of the company’s stock valued at $893,307,000 after purchasing an additional 2,242,116 shares during the period. Finally, Norges Bank purchased a new position in Fastenal in the 4th quarter worth approximately $646,046,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 81.38% of the company’s stock.

Insider Buying and Selling at Fastenal

In related news, Director Michael J. Ancius sold 3,000 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction 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 owned 58,690 shares in the company, valued at approximately $2,875,810. The trade was a 4.86% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Company insiders own 0.28% of the company’s stock.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several research analysts have weighed in on FAST shares. DA Davidson restated a “neutral” rating and issued a $46.00 price target on shares of Fastenal in a research note on Wednesday, July 15th. Robert W. Baird reduced their price objective on shares of Fastenal from $52.00 to $50.00 and set an “outperform” rating on the stock in a research report on Tuesday, April 14th. Rothschild & Co Redburn set a $55.00 target price on shares of Fastenal and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Monday, July 13th. Bank of America upped their target price on shares of Fastenal from $48.00 to $55.00 in a research report on Monday, April 13th. Finally, Sanford C. Bernstein reaffirmed an “underperform” rating on shares of Fastenal in a research note on Wednesday, July 15th. Five investment 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 stock currently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $48.83.

Fastenal Price Performance

Shares of Fastenal stock opened at $47.71 on Friday. The firm has a market cap of $54.75 billion, a PE ratio of 40.43, a PEG ratio of 2.92 and a beta of 0.72. The stock has a 50 day moving average of $46.31 and a 200 day moving average of $45.57. The company has a current ratio of 4.18, a quick ratio of 2.21 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.01. Fastenal Company has a 12 month low of $38.97 and a 12 month high of $50.63.

Fastenal (NASDAQ:FAST) last released its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, July 14th. The company reported $0.33 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, hitting analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.33. Fastenal had a return on equity of 34.03% and a net margin of 15.45%.The business had revenue of $2.39 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $2.34 billion. During the same quarter in the previous year, the company posted $0.29 EPS. The company’s revenue was up 14.7% compared to the same quarter last year. On average, research analysts expect that Fastenal Company will post 1.25 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. Investors of record on Tuesday, July 28th will be issued a $0.26 dividend. This represents a $1.04 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 2.2%. This is a boost from Fastenal’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.24. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Tuesday, July 28th. Fastenal’s payout ratio is 88.14%.

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.