Jefferies Financial Group Inc. Acquires 26,835 Shares of Fastenal Company $FAST

Jefferies Financial Group Inc. raised its holdings in Fastenal Company (NASDAQ:FAST) by 148.4% in the fourth quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm owned 44,923 shares of the company’s stock after purchasing an additional 26,835 shares during the quarter. Jefferies Financial Group Inc.’s holdings in Fastenal were worth $1,803,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC).

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in FAST. Bank of America Corp DE raised its stake in shares of Fastenal by 106.1% in the second quarter. Bank of America Corp DE now owns 15,431,393 shares of the company’s stock valued at $648,118,000 after buying an additional 7,943,217 shares during the period. Vanguard Group Inc. lifted its holdings in shares of Fastenal by 1.6% in the third quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 151,515,539 shares of the company’s stock worth $7,430,322,000 after buying an additional 2,346,045 shares in the last quarter. Invesco Ltd. increased its holdings in shares of Fastenal by 14.0% in the third quarter. Invesco Ltd. now owns 18,215,875 shares of the company’s stock worth $893,307,000 after purchasing an additional 2,242,116 shares during the period. Bank Julius Baer & Co. Ltd Zurich grew its holdings in shares of Fastenal by 1,039.6% during the fourth quarter. Bank Julius Baer & Co. Ltd Zurich now owns 2,337,722 shares of the company’s stock worth $94,253,000 after purchasing an additional 2,132,593 shares in the last quarter. Finally, American Century Companies Inc. lifted its holdings in shares of Fastenal by 90.7% during the 3rd quarter. American Century Companies Inc. now owns 3,590,292 shares of the company’s stock worth $176,068,000 after acquiring an additional 1,707,396 shares during the last quarter. 81.38% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several equities analysts recently commented on FAST shares. JPMorgan Chase & Co. increased their target price on shares of Fastenal from $46.00 to $47.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a report on Thursday, April 9th. Wolfe Research cut their price target on shares of Fastenal from $46.00 to $45.00 and set an “underperform” rating on the stock in a report on Tuesday, April 14th. Morgan Stanley reiterated a “positive” rating and issued a $45.00 price objective on shares of Fastenal in a report on Thursday, March 5th. Benchmark reaffirmed a “buy” rating on shares of Fastenal in a research note on Thursday, March 5th. Finally, Bank of America lifted their target price on shares of Fastenal from $48.00 to $55.00 in a report on Monday, April 13th. Five research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, six have assigned a Hold rating and two have issued a Sell rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company currently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $49.77.

Fastenal Price Performance

NASDAQ FAST opened at $44.82 on Thursday. Fastenal Company has a 52 week low of $38.97 and a 52 week high of $50.63. The company has a quick ratio of 2.34, a current ratio of 4.39 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.03. The firm has a market capitalization of $51.46 billion, a P/E ratio of 39.32, a PEG ratio of 2.84 and a beta of 0.75. The company has a 50-day moving average price of $45.00 and a 200-day moving average price of $43.80.

Fastenal (NASDAQ:FAST) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Monday, April 13th. The company reported $0.30 earnings per share for the quarter, meeting analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.30. Fastenal had a return on equity of 33.25% and a net margin of 15.39%.The firm had revenue of $2.20 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $2.19 billion. During the same period in the previous year, the firm earned $0.52 EPS. The business’s quarterly revenue was up 12.4% on a year-over-year basis. Equities research analysts anticipate that Fastenal Company will post 1.23 earnings per share for the current year.

Fastenal Announces Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, May 26th. Investors of record on Tuesday, April 28th were given a dividend of $0.24 per share. The ex-dividend date was Tuesday, April 28th. This represents a $0.96 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 2.1%. Fastenal’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 84.21%.

Insider Activity

In related news, Director Reyne K. Wisecup sold 36,920 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Thursday, March 5th. The stock was sold at an average price of $47.34, for a total transaction of $1,747,792.80. Following the completion of the sale, the director owned 40,000 shares in the company, valued at approximately $1,893,600. This trade represents a 48.00% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. Corporate insiders own 0.28% of the company’s stock.

Fastenal 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.