Meadowbrook Advisors Group LLC Invests $901,000 in Fastenal Company $FAST

Meadowbrook Advisors Group LLC acquired a new stake in Fastenal Company (NASDAQ:FAST) in the 4th quarter, HoldingsChannel.com reports. The institutional investor acquired 22,460 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $901,000.

A number of other institutional investors have also made changes to their positions in the company. State Street Corp raised its position in shares of Fastenal by 1.2% during the 4th quarter. State Street Corp now owns 54,734,674 shares of the company’s stock valued at $2,196,502,000 after acquiring an additional 631,889 shares in the last quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. boosted its holdings in Fastenal by 2.0% in the fourth quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. now owns 47,297,047 shares of the company’s stock worth $1,898,031,000 after purchasing an additional 919,158 shares during the period. Geode Capital Management LLC boosted its holdings in Fastenal by 1.9% in the fourth quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 37,699,836 shares of the company’s stock worth $1,508,216,000 after purchasing an additional 685,047 shares during the period. Invesco Ltd. increased its stake in Fastenal by 14.0% during the third quarter. Invesco Ltd. now owns 18,215,875 shares of the company’s stock valued at $893,307,000 after purchasing an additional 2,242,116 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Norges Bank acquired a new stake in shares of Fastenal during the fourth quarter worth $646,046,000. 81.38% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Fastenal Stock Performance

Shares of FAST opened at $45.91 on Friday. The firm has a fifty day moving average of $45.08 and a 200-day moving average of $44.43. The company has a market cap of $52.70 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 40.27, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.92 and a beta of 0.73. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.03, a quick ratio of 2.34 and a current ratio of 4.39. Fastenal Company has a 1 year low of $38.97 and a 1 year high of $50.63.

Fastenal (NASDAQ:FAST) last released its quarterly earnings data on Monday, April 13th. The company reported $0.30 earnings per share for the quarter, hitting analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.30. The business had revenue of $2.20 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $2.19 billion. Fastenal had a net margin of 15.39% and a return on equity of 33.25%. The company’s revenue for the quarter was up 12.4% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter last year, the company earned $0.52 EPS. As a group, equities analysts anticipate that Fastenal Company will post 1.23 earnings per share for the current year.

Fastenal Announces Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, May 26th. Investors of record on Tuesday, April 28th were given a $0.24 dividend. This represents a $0.96 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.1%. The ex-dividend date was Tuesday, April 28th. Fastenal’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 84.21%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of research analysts have recently issued reports on FAST shares. Sanford C. Bernstein restated an “underperform” rating and issued a $42.00 price target on shares of Fastenal in a research report on Tuesday, April 14th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. boosted their price objective on shares of Fastenal from $46.00 to $47.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research report on Thursday, April 9th. Wolfe Research dropped their price objective on shares of Fastenal from $46.00 to $45.00 and set an “underperform” rating on the stock in a research note on Tuesday, April 14th. Weiss Ratings reissued a “buy (b-)” rating on shares of Fastenal in a report on Friday, March 27th. Finally, Morgan Stanley restated a “positive” rating and issued a $45.00 target price on shares of Fastenal in a research note on Thursday, March 5th. Five investment analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, seven have given a Hold rating and two have given a Sell rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has an average rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $49.57.

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.