PGGM Investments Has $15.58 Million Stock Holdings in Fastenal (NASDAQ:FAST)

PGGM Investments boosted its holdings in shares of Fastenal (NASDAQ:FAST) by 0.2% during the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund owned 240,521 shares of the company’s stock after buying an additional 433 shares during the period. PGGM Investments’ holdings in Fastenal were worth $15,579,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other hedge funds have also added to or reduced their stakes in the stock. Hartford Financial Management Inc. raised its position in Fastenal by 46.9% in the fourth quarter. Hartford Financial Management Inc. now owns 479 shares of the company’s stock worth $31,000 after acquiring an additional 153 shares during the period. Empirical Asset Management LLC raised its position in Fastenal by 2.4% in the fourth quarter. Empirical Asset Management LLC now owns 7,212 shares of the company’s stock worth $467,000 after acquiring an additional 171 shares during the period. Berkshire Bank raised its position in Fastenal by 3.1% in the third quarter. Berkshire Bank now owns 5,777 shares of the company’s stock worth $316,000 after acquiring an additional 174 shares during the period. OmniStar Financial Group Inc. raised its position in Fastenal by 1.1% in the third quarter. OmniStar Financial Group Inc. now owns 15,960 shares of the company’s stock worth $873,000 after acquiring an additional 174 shares during the period. Finally, Koshinski Asset Management Inc. raised its position in Fastenal by 3.8% in the fourth quarter. Koshinski Asset Management Inc. now owns 5,075 shares of the company’s stock worth $329,000 after acquiring an additional 186 shares during the period. Institutional investors own 81.38% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Ratings Changes

FAST has been the subject of several recent research reports. Robert W. Baird reduced their target price on shares of Fastenal from $77.00 to $71.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a research note on Friday, April 12th. Loop Capital reduced their target price on shares of Fastenal from $71.00 to $66.00 and set a “hold” rating for the company in a research note on Monday, April 15th. Stifel Nicolaus lifted their target price on shares of Fastenal from $75.00 to $85.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Monday, March 18th. Finally, HSBC lifted their target price on shares of Fastenal from $59.00 to $64.00 and gave the stock a “hold” rating in a research note on Monday, April 15th. Five analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and one has issued a buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, the company presently has an average rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $67.67.

Fastenal Price Performance

NASDAQ:FAST traded up $0.03 during mid-day trading on Friday, hitting $68.17. 2,802,015 shares of the stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 4,004,192. The business’s 50-day moving average price is $73.41 and its 200 day moving average price is $66.80. The company has a market cap of $39.03 billion, a PE ratio of 33.75, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 3.57 and a beta of 1.05. Fastenal has a 12-month low of $52.66 and a 12-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.

Fastenal (NASDAQ:FAST) last released its quarterly 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 company had revenue of $1.90 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $1.91 billion. Fastenal had a return on equity of 33.98% and a net margin of 15.68%. Fastenal’s quarterly revenue was up 1.9% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the prior year, the firm earned $0.52 EPS. On average, analysts expect that Fastenal will post 2.12 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Fastenal Announces Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, May 23rd. Shareholders of record on Thursday, April 25th will be given a dividend of $0.39 per share. This represents a $1.56 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 2.29%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Wednesday, April 24th. Fastenal’s payout ratio is currently 77.23%.

Insider Buying and Selling at Fastenal

In related news, Director Daniel L. Johnson acquired 3,350 shares of Fastenal stock in a transaction on Wednesday, April 17th. The shares were acquired at an average cost of $68.38 per share, with a total value of $229,073.00. Following the transaction, the director now owns 10,595 shares in the company, valued at $724,486.10. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available through this hyperlink. In other news, VP Charles S. Miller sold 11,076 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Friday, March 15th. The shares were sold at an average price of $75.16, for a total value of $832,472.16. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available through this link. Also, Director Daniel L. Johnson bought 3,350 shares of Fastenal stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, April 17th. The stock was acquired at an average cost of $68.38 per share, for a total transaction of $229,073.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the director now directly owns 10,595 shares in the company, valued at $724,486.10. The disclosure for this purchase can be found here. In the last ninety days, insiders have sold 36,082 shares of company stock valued at $2,584,060. 0.41% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

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.