Fastenal (NASDAQ:FAST) Stock Holdings Lowered by Loudon Investment Management LLC

Loudon Investment Management LLC reduced its stake in shares of Fastenal (NASDAQ:FAST) by 0.4% during the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the SEC. The firm owned 81,066 shares of the company’s stock after selling 300 shares during the quarter. Fastenal accounts for approximately 3.3% of Loudon Investment Management LLC’s holdings, making the stock its 6th largest holding. Loudon Investment Management LLC’s holdings in Fastenal were worth $5,829,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other hedge funds have also modified their holdings of FAST. Whittier Trust Co. of Nevada Inc. increased its holdings in Fastenal by 6.0% during the 4th quarter. Whittier Trust Co. of Nevada Inc. now owns 4,653 shares of the company’s stock worth $335,000 after purchasing an additional 263 shares during the last quarter. Blueshift Asset Management LLC purchased a new stake in Fastenal during the 4th quarter worth approximately $246,000. Royal London Asset Management Ltd. increased its holdings in Fastenal by 4.8% during the 4th quarter. Royal London Asset Management Ltd. now owns 384,029 shares of the company’s stock worth $27,616,000 after purchasing an additional 17,672 shares during the last quarter. Harvest Fund Management Co. Ltd increased its holdings in Fastenal by 41.5% during the 4th quarter. Harvest Fund Management Co. Ltd now owns 37,315 shares of the company’s stock worth $2,597,000 after purchasing an additional 10,937 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Generali Asset Management SPA SGR purchased a new stake in Fastenal during the 4th quarter worth approximately $5,757,000. 81.38% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Fastenal Trading Down 1.2 %

NASDAQ:FAST opened at $75.51 on Friday. Fastenal has a 12-month low of $61.36 and a 12-month high of $84.88. The firm has a market capitalization of $43.30 billion, a P/E ratio of 37.57, a P/E/G ratio of 3.58 and a beta of 1.05. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.03, a current ratio of 4.67 and a quick ratio of 2.28. The business has a 50 day simple moving average of $75.02 and a 200 day simple moving average of $75.47.

Fastenal (NASDAQ:FAST) last released its quarterly earnings data on Friday, January 17th. The company reported $0.46 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.48 by ($0.02). Fastenal had a net margin of 15.25% and a return on equity of 32.55%. The company had revenue of $1.82 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $1.84 billion. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm earned $0.46 EPS. The company’s revenue for the quarter was up 3.7% compared to the same quarter last year. Equities research analysts predict that Fastenal will post 2.15 EPS for the current year.

Fastenal Increases Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, February 28th. Investors of record on Friday, January 31st were given a dividend of $0.43 per share. The ex-dividend date was Friday, January 31st. This represents a $1.72 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 2.28%. This is a positive change from Fastenal’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.39. Fastenal’s payout ratio is currently 85.57%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several equities research analysts have issued reports on the company. Stifel Nicolaus dropped their price objective on Fastenal from $86.00 to $82.00 and set a “hold” rating on the stock in a report on Tuesday, January 21st. Wolfe Research boosted their price target on Fastenal from $74.00 to $76.00 and gave the company an “underweight” rating in a report on Thursday, January 16th. Hsbc Global Res downgraded Fastenal from a “hold” rating to a “moderate sell” rating in a report on Wednesday, December 11th. William Blair upgraded Fastenal from a “market perform” rating to an “outperform” rating in a report on Monday, March 10th. Finally, HSBC downgraded Fastenal from a “hold” rating to a “reduce” rating and set a $70.00 price target for the company. in a report on Wednesday, December 11th. Two analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, eight have given a hold rating and two have issued a buy rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company presently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $76.91.

Fastenal Company 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.