Nomura Asset Management Co. Ltd. Trims Stock Position in Fastenal (NASDAQ:FAST)

Nomura Asset Management Co. Ltd. reduced its stake in Fastenal (NASDAQ:FAST) by 3.3% during the 4th quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund owned 775,692 shares of the company’s stock after selling 26,712 shares during the quarter. Nomura Asset Management Co. Ltd. owned 0.14% of Fastenal worth $55,780,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors also recently modified their holdings of the stock. OFI Invest Asset Management purchased a new position in Fastenal during the fourth quarter worth about $46,000. Whipplewood Advisors LLC purchased a new position in shares of Fastenal during the 4th quarter worth approximately $49,000. SBI Securities Co. Ltd. purchased a new position in shares of Fastenal during the 4th quarter worth approximately $49,000. R Squared Ltd acquired a new stake in shares of Fastenal in the 4th quarter valued at approximately $68,000. Finally, Eastern Bank boosted its stake in shares of Fastenal by 440.7% in the fourth quarter. Eastern Bank now owns 984 shares of the company’s stock valued at $71,000 after buying an additional 802 shares in the last quarter. 81.38% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Fastenal Price Performance

FAST stock opened at $76.17 on Friday. The stock’s 50 day moving average price is $75.35 and its 200 day moving average price is $75.89. The firm has a market cap of $43.68 billion, a P/E ratio of 37.90, a PEG ratio of 3.58 and a beta of 1.05. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.03, a quick ratio of 2.28 and a current ratio of 4.67. Fastenal has a 1 year low of $61.36 and a 1 year high of $84.88.

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

Fastenal Increases Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, February 28th. Stockholders of record on Friday, January 31st were issued a dividend of $0.43 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, January 31st. This is an increase from Fastenal’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.39. This represents a $1.72 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 2.26%. Fastenal’s payout ratio is 85.57%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several research firms have issued reports on FAST. Stifel Nicolaus cut their price objective on Fastenal from $86.00 to $82.00 and set a “hold” rating for the company in a research report on Tuesday, January 21st. HSBC downgraded shares of 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. Hsbc Global Res downgraded shares of Fastenal from a “hold” rating to a “moderate sell” rating in a report on Wednesday, December 11th. Jefferies Financial Group upped their target price on shares of Fastenal from $74.00 to $85.00 and gave the stock a “hold” rating in a research report on Friday, December 6th. Finally, Wolfe Research boosted their price target on Fastenal from $74.00 to $76.00 and gave the stock an “underweight” rating in a research note on Thursday, January 16th. Two research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, eight have given a hold rating and two have given a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company currently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $76.91.

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.