VIRGINIA RETIREMENT SYSTEMS ET Al Invests $54.79 Million in Fastenal Company $FAST

VIRGINIA RETIREMENT SYSTEMS ET Al acquired a new stake in Fastenal Company (NASDAQ:FAST) in the 2nd quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the SEC. The fund acquired 1,140,834 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $54,794,000. VIRGINIA RETIREMENT SYSTEMS ET Al owned approximately 0.10% of Fastenal as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other institutional investors also recently modified their holdings of the company. Integrated Wealth Concepts LLC raised its holdings in shares of Fastenal by 2.4% during the first quarter. Integrated Wealth Concepts LLC now owns 6,276 shares of the company’s stock valued at $487,000 after purchasing an additional 147 shares during the period. High Net Worth Advisory Group LLC grew its stake in shares of Fastenal by 2.4% in the 2nd quarter. High Net Worth Advisory Group LLC now owns 9,006 shares of the company’s stock valued at $433,000 after buying an additional 214 shares during the period. Tandem Investment Advisors Inc. increased its position in Fastenal by 1.8% in the 1st quarter. Tandem Investment Advisors Inc. now owns 12,356 shares of the company’s stock valued at $573,000 after buying an additional 224 shares in the last quarter. Sittner & Nelson LLC increased its position in Fastenal by 0.3% in the 4th quarter. Sittner & Nelson LLC now owns 68,495 shares of the company’s stock valued at $2,749,000 after buying an additional 226 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Sound Income Strategies LLC raised its stake in Fastenal by 12.9% during the 1st quarter. Sound Income Strategies LLC now owns 2,025 shares of the company’s stock worth $94,000 after buying an additional 232 shares during the period. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 81.38% of the company’s stock.

Insider Buying and Selling at Fastenal

In other news, Director Rita Heise sold 34,964 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, August 5th. The shares were sold at an average price of $50.05, for a total value of $1,749,948.20. Following the completion of the sale, the director owned 20,000 shares in the company, valued at $1,001,000. This represents a 63.61% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available at this hyperlink. Also, Director Michael J. Ancius sold 3,000 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, July 28th. The shares were sold at an average price of $49.00, for a total transaction of $147,000.00. Following the transaction, the director directly owned 58,690 shares in the company, valued at $2,875,810. The trade was a 4.86% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale is available in the SEC filing. 0.28% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Fastenal Stock Performance

Shares of FAST opened at $49.60 on Monday. The firm has a market capitalization of $56.92 billion, a P/E ratio of 42.03, a P/E/G ratio of 3.09 and a beta of 0.72. Fastenal Company has a 52 week low of $38.97 and a 52 week high of $52.92. The stock has a 50 day moving average price of $48.71 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $46.59. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.01, a quick ratio of 2.21 and a current ratio of 4.18.

Fastenal (NASDAQ:FAST) last posted its earnings results on Tuesday, July 14th. The company reported $0.33 earnings per share for the quarter, meeting analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.33. The company had revenue of $2.39 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $2.34 billion. Fastenal had a return on equity of 34.03% and a net margin of 15.45%.The company’s revenue for the quarter was up 14.7% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter last year, the company earned $0.29 earnings per share. Equities analysts forecast that Fastenal Company will post 1.26 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Fastenal Increases Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, August 25th. Shareholders of record on Tuesday, July 28th were paid a dividend of $0.26 per share. This is a boost from Fastenal’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.24. The ex-dividend date was Tuesday, July 28th. This represents a $1.04 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.1%. Fastenal’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 88.14%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

FAST has been the subject of a number of research reports. DA Davidson reissued a “neutral” rating and issued a $46.00 price objective on shares of Fastenal in a research note on Wednesday, July 15th. Jefferies Financial Group reiterated a “buy” rating on shares of Fastenal in a report on Thursday, June 4th. William Blair reissued an “outperform” rating on shares of Fastenal in a research report on Friday. Barclays decreased their price target on shares of Fastenal from $47.00 to $46.00 and set an “equal weight” rating for the company in a research note on Thursday, July 16th. Finally, Weiss Ratings upgraded shares of Fastenal from a “buy (b-)” rating to a “buy (b)” rating in a report on Wednesday, August 26th. Six equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, five have issued a Hold rating and two have assigned a Sell rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock presently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $49.17.

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.