Daiwa Securities Group Inc. Purchases 17,987 Shares of Fastenal (NASDAQ:FAST)

Daiwa Securities Group Inc. increased its position in Fastenal (NASDAQ:FAST) by 15.3% in the 4th quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the SEC. The firm owned 135,457 shares of the company’s stock after buying an additional 17,987 shares during the period. Daiwa Securities Group Inc.’s holdings in Fastenal were worth $8,774,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other hedge funds also recently bought and sold shares of the company. Zurcher Kantonalbank Zurich Cantonalbank boosted its holdings in shares of Fastenal by 21.2% during the 4th quarter. Zurcher Kantonalbank Zurich Cantonalbank now owns 163,751 shares of the company’s stock valued at $10,606,000 after purchasing an additional 28,629 shares during the last quarter. Everence Capital Management Inc. raised its position in Fastenal by 63.2% in the 4th quarter. Everence Capital Management Inc. now owns 15,990 shares of the company’s stock worth $1,036,000 after purchasing an additional 6,190 shares during the period. SVB Wealth LLC raised its position in Fastenal by 29.6% in the 4th quarter. SVB Wealth LLC now owns 8,740 shares of the company’s stock worth $566,000 after purchasing an additional 1,997 shares during the period. Waldron Private Wealth LLC purchased a new stake in Fastenal in the 4th quarter worth about $246,000. Finally, Strs Ohio bought a new position in Fastenal in the 4th quarter worth about $1,932,000. Institutional investors own 81.38% of the company’s stock.

Fastenal Price Performance

Shares of FAST opened at $67.50 on Friday. The company has a market cap of $38.65 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 33.42, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 3.57 and a beta of 1.05. 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 50 day moving average of $73.67 and a two-hundred day moving average of $66.21.

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

Fastenal Dividend Announcement

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, May 23rd. Shareholders of record on Thursday, April 25th will be issued a $0.39 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Wednesday, April 24th. This represents a $1.56 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 2.31%. Fastenal’s dividend payout ratio is currently 77.23%.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In related news, Director Daniel L. Johnson purchased 3,350 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Wednesday, April 17th. The stock was acquired at an average price of $68.38 per share, with a total value of $229,073.00. Following the completion of the acquisition, the director now owns 10,595 shares in the company, valued at approximately $724,486.10. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is accessible through the SEC website. In other Fastenal news, Director Daniel L. Johnson bought 3,350 shares of Fastenal stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, April 17th. The stock was purchased at an average price of $68.38 per share, with a total value of $229,073.00. Following the completion of the acquisition, the director now directly owns 10,595 shares in the company, valued at approximately $724,486.10. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Also, insider William Joseph Drazkowski sold 11,968 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Thursday, January 25th. The stock was sold at an average price of $69.10, for a total transaction of $826,988.80. Following the transaction, the insider now directly owns 5,997 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $414,392.70. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last quarter, insiders sold 71,640 shares of company stock valued at $5,044,657. Insiders own 0.41% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

FAST has been the topic of a number of research analyst reports. Stifel Nicolaus upped 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. Robert W. Baird dropped their price objective on shares of Fastenal from $77.00 to $71.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a research note on Friday, April 12th. 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. Finally, HSBC increased their price objective on shares of Fastenal from $59.00 to $64.00 and gave the company a “hold” rating in a research note on Monday. Five equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and one has assigned a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat, the stock has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $67.67.

About Fastenal

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.