Fastenal Company $FAST Shares Acquired by State of New Jersey Common Pension Fund D

State of New Jersey Common Pension Fund D increased its stake in Fastenal Company (NASDAQ:FAST) by 6.3% in the third quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 400,113 shares of the company’s stock after purchasing an additional 23,815 shares during the quarter. State of New Jersey Common Pension Fund D’s holdings in Fastenal were worth $19,622,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

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

In other news, Director Sarah N. Nielsen purchased 1,000 shares of the stock in a transaction on Wednesday, November 19th. The stock was purchased at an average price of $39.60 per share, with a total value of $39,600.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the director owned 5,000 shares in the company, valued at approximately $198,000. The trade was a 25.00% increase in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this hyperlink. Also, Director Scott Satterlee sold 15,964 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Friday, January 23rd. The stock was sold at an average price of $44.19, for a total value of $705,449.16. Following the sale, the director owned 50,000 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $2,209,500. This represents a 24.20% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. Corporate insiders own 0.37% of the company’s stock.

Fastenal Stock Up 1.9%

FAST stock opened at $46.41 on Monday. The company has a 50 day moving average price of $43.08 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $44.42. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.03, a quick ratio of 2.41 and a current ratio of 4.85. The stock has a market capitalization of $53.29 billion, a P/E ratio of 42.19, a PEG ratio of 2.96 and a beta of 0.89. Fastenal Company has a one year low of $35.31 and a one year high of $50.63.

Fastenal (NASDAQ:FAST) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, January 20th. The company reported $0.26 EPS for the quarter, meeting analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.26. Fastenal had a return on equity of 32.83% and a net margin of 15.35%.The business had revenue of $2.03 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $2.04 billion. During the same quarter in the previous year, the business earned $0.46 earnings per share. The business’s revenue for the quarter was up 11.1% on a year-over-year basis. As a group, sell-side analysts expect that Fastenal Company will post 2.15 EPS for the current year.

Fastenal Increases Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, February 26th. Investors of record on Thursday, January 29th will be given a $0.24 dividend. This is a boost from Fastenal’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.22. This represents a $0.96 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 2.1%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Thursday, January 29th. Fastenal’s dividend payout ratio is 87.27%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of brokerages recently commented on FAST. Robert W. Baird increased their price objective on shares of Fastenal from $49.00 to $51.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research note on Thursday, February 5th. UBS Group reiterated a “neutral” rating and issued a $46.00 price target on shares of Fastenal in a research report on Wednesday, January 21st. Weiss Ratings restated a “buy (b-)” rating on shares of Fastenal in a research report on Monday, December 29th. Wolfe Research lowered their target price on Fastenal from $43.00 to $42.00 and set an “underperform” rating on the stock in a report on Wednesday, January 21st. Finally, Sanford C. Bernstein reissued an “underperform” rating on shares of Fastenal in a report on Wednesday, January 21st. Four equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, seven have issued a Hold rating and two have given a Sell rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock presently has an average rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $48.18.

About Fastenal

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.