Fastenal Company $FAST Stake Lifted by Neuberger Berman Group LLC

Neuberger Berman Group LLC lifted its stake in shares of Fastenal Company (NASDAQ:FAST) by 112.8% during the second quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm owned 88,153 shares of the company’s stock after acquiring an additional 46,737 shares during the quarter. Neuberger Berman Group LLC’s holdings in Fastenal were worth $3,702,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other institutional investors have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in FAST. Vanguard Group Inc. increased its position in shares of Fastenal by 103.5% during the 2nd quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 149,169,494 shares of the company’s stock valued at $6,265,119,000 after purchasing an additional 75,852,223 shares during the period. State Street Corp boosted its stake in Fastenal by 99.6% during the second quarter. State Street Corp now owns 54,317,385 shares of the company’s stock valued at $2,281,330,000 after buying an additional 27,107,520 shares in the last quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. grew its holdings in Fastenal by 103.4% during the second quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. now owns 45,995,937 shares of the company’s stock worth $1,931,830,000 after acquiring an additional 23,380,022 shares during the period. Geode Capital Management LLC raised its position in Fastenal by 103.8% in the second quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 35,984,281 shares of the company’s stock worth $1,506,141,000 after acquiring an additional 18,329,847 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Bank of New York Mellon Corp lifted its holdings in Fastenal by 87.9% in the 2nd quarter. Bank of New York Mellon Corp now owns 34,851,036 shares of the company’s stock valued at $1,463,743,000 after acquiring an additional 16,308,254 shares during the last quarter. 81.38% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Insider Activity

In other Fastenal news, Director Hsenghung Sam Hsu acquired 1,000 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Thursday, November 13th. The stock was purchased at an average cost of $49.58 per share, for a total transaction of $49,580.00. Following the transaction, the director owned 10,000 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $495,800. The trade was a 11.11% increase in their position. The purchase was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Also, Director Sarah N. Nielsen bought 1,000 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, November 19th. The stock was acquired at an average price of $39.60 per share, for a total transaction of $39,600.00. Following the acquisition, the director directly owned 5,000 shares in the company, valued at $198,000. This trade represents a 25.00% increase in their ownership of the stock. Additional details regarding this purchase are available in the official SEC disclosure. Over the last three months, insiders purchased 3,000 shares of company stock valued at $131,630. Company insiders own 0.37% of the company’s stock.

Fastenal Stock Up 0.6%

Shares of NASDAQ:FAST opened at $42.01 on Monday. The firm has a 50 day simple moving average of $41.80 and a 200 day simple moving average of $44.42. Fastenal Company has a 52 week low of $35.31 and a 52 week high of $50.63. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.03, a quick ratio of 2.19 and a current ratio of 4.26. The company has a market cap of $48.23 billion, a PE ratio of 39.26, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 3.36 and a beta of 0.89.

Fastenal (NASDAQ:FAST) last announced its earnings results on Tuesday, October 14th. The company reported $0.29 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $0.30 by ($0.01). The firm had revenue of $2.13 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $2.13 billion. Fastenal had a net margin of 15.34% and a return on equity of 32.69%. Fastenal’s revenue for the quarter was up 11.7% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period last year, the firm earned $0.26 earnings per share. As a group, research analysts expect that Fastenal Company will post 2.15 earnings per share for the current year.

Fastenal Announces Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, November 25th. Investors of record on Tuesday, October 28th were given a dividend of $0.22 per share. This represents a $0.88 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.1%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Tuesday, October 28th. Fastenal’s payout ratio is presently 82.24%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several equities analysts have recently issued reports on FAST shares. Barclays lowered their price objective on shares of Fastenal from $45.00 to $44.00 and set an “equal weight” rating on the stock in a research note on Thursday, November 13th. Wolfe Research upgraded shares of Fastenal from an “underperform” rating to a “peer perform” rating and set a $43.00 price target on the stock in a research report on Thursday, November 13th. Jefferies Financial Group set a $52.00 price target on Fastenal and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Monday. JPMorgan Chase & Co. raised their price objective on Fastenal from $41.00 to $46.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research note on Thursday, September 4th. Finally, Northcoast Research assumed coverage on Fastenal in a report on Thursday, August 21st. They issued a “neutral” rating on the stock. One research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, four have given a Buy rating, eight have given a Hold rating and one has given a Sell rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, Fastenal currently has an average rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $48.40.

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.