Blueshift Asset Management LLC Invests $246,000 in Fastenal (NASDAQ:FAST)

Blueshift Asset Management LLC purchased a new position in Fastenal (NASDAQ:FAST) during the fourth quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor purchased 3,424 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $246,000.

Other institutional investors also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Royal London Asset Management Ltd. grew its stake in Fastenal by 4.8% in the 4th quarter. Royal London Asset Management Ltd. now owns 384,029 shares of the company’s stock worth $27,616,000 after acquiring an additional 17,672 shares in the last quarter. Harvest Fund Management Co. Ltd grew its stake in Fastenal by 41.5% in the fourth 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 in the last quarter. Generali Asset Management SPA SGR purchased a new position in Fastenal during the 4th quarter worth $5,757,000. PDS Planning Inc bought a new stake in Fastenal during the 4th quarter valued at $218,000. Finally, RD Lewis Holdings Inc. purchased a new stake in shares of Fastenal in the 4th quarter worth $764,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 81.38% of the company’s stock.

Fastenal Price Performance

Shares of NASDAQ FAST opened at $74.73 on Friday. Fastenal has a fifty-two week low of $61.36 and a fifty-two week high of $84.88. The company has a market cap of $42.85 billion, a PE ratio of 37.18, 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 quick ratio of 2.28 and a current ratio of 4.67. The business has a 50-day simple moving average of $75.08 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $75.52.

Fastenal (NASDAQ:FAST) last released its earnings results on Friday, January 17th. The company reported $0.46 earnings per share for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $0.48 by ($0.02). The company had revenue of $1.82 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $1.84 billion. Fastenal had a return on equity of 32.55% and a net margin of 15.25%. The firm’s revenue for the quarter was up 3.7% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the prior year, the firm posted $0.46 EPS. As a group, equities analysts expect that Fastenal will post 2.15 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Fastenal Increases Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, February 28th. Investors of record on Friday, January 31st were paid a $0.43 dividend. This is a positive change from Fastenal’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.39. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, January 31st. This represents a $1.72 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 2.30%. Fastenal’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 85.57%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several equities analysts have recently commented on the company. Hsbc Global Res downgraded Fastenal from a “hold” rating to a “moderate sell” rating in a report on Wednesday, December 11th. William Blair upgraded shares of Fastenal from a “market perform” rating to an “outperform” rating in a report on Monday, March 10th. Wolfe Research increased their price objective on shares of Fastenal from $74.00 to $76.00 and gave the company an “underweight” rating in a research note on Thursday, January 16th. Jefferies Financial Group boosted their price objective on shares of Fastenal from $74.00 to $85.00 and gave the stock a “hold” rating in a research note on Friday, December 6th. Finally, HSBC cut Fastenal from a “hold” rating to a “reduce” rating and set a $70.00 target price on the stock. in a research report on Wednesday, December 11th. Two 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 has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target 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.