Groupe la Francaise Increases Holdings in Fastenal Company $FAST

Groupe la Francaise lifted its holdings in shares of Fastenal Company (NASDAQ:FAST) by 9.9% during the first quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm owned 152,612 shares of the company’s stock after purchasing an additional 13,789 shares during the period. Groupe la Francaise’s holdings in Fastenal were worth $7,081,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other institutional investors also recently added to or reduced their stakes in FAST. Wiregrass Investment Management LLC bought a new stake in shares of Fastenal during the fourth quarter valued at about $1,020,000. Swiss Life Asset Management Ltd boosted its position in shares of Fastenal by 2.7% in the fourth quarter. Swiss Life Asset Management Ltd now owns 1,491,994 shares of the company’s stock valued at $59,874,000 after acquiring an additional 39,406 shares during the period. LBP AM SA boosted its position in shares of Fastenal by 11.8% in the fourth quarter. LBP AM SA now owns 232,847 shares of the company’s stock valued at $9,344,000 after acquiring an additional 24,536 shares during the period. Fideuram Asset Management Ireland dac purchased a new position in Fastenal during the fourth quarter valued at approximately $4,041,000. Finally, National Pension Service grew its stake in Fastenal by 2.9% during the fourth quarter. National Pension Service now owns 1,603,839 shares of the company’s stock valued at $64,362,000 after acquiring an additional 45,260 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors own 81.38% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several analysts have issued reports on the stock. Bank of America increased their target price on shares of Fastenal from $48.00 to $55.00 in a research note on Monday, April 13th. Wolfe Research restated an “underperform” rating and set a $47.00 price target on shares of Fastenal in a research report on Thursday, July 9th. Rothschild & Co Redburn set a $55.00 price target on shares of Fastenal and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Monday, July 13th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. increased their price objective on Fastenal from $46.00 to $47.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research report on Thursday, April 9th. Finally, Weiss Ratings lowered Fastenal from a “buy (b)” rating to a “buy (b-)” rating in a research note on Tuesday, July 21st. Five equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, six have issued a Hold rating and two have assigned a Sell rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock currently has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $48.83.

Fastenal Stock Up 2.3%

FAST stock opened at $47.71 on Friday. The company has a current ratio of 4.18, a quick ratio of 2.21 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.01. The company’s 50 day moving average is $46.31 and its 200 day moving average is $45.57. The stock has a market cap of $54.75 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 40.43, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.92 and a beta of 0.72. Fastenal Company has a 1-year low of $38.97 and a 1-year high of $50.63.

Fastenal (NASDAQ:FAST) last announced its earnings results on Tuesday, July 14th. The company reported $0.33 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, meeting the consensus estimate of $0.33. Fastenal had a net margin of 15.45% and a return on equity of 34.03%. The business had revenue of $2.39 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $2.34 billion. During the same period in the previous year, the business posted $0.29 earnings per share. Fastenal’s revenue for the quarter was up 14.7% on a year-over-year basis. Sell-side analysts predict that Fastenal Company will post 1.25 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Fastenal Increases Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, August 25th. Stockholders of record on Tuesday, July 28th will be given a dividend of $0.26 per share. This is an increase from Fastenal’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.24. The ex-dividend date is Tuesday, July 28th. This represents a $1.04 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 2.2%. Fastenal’s dividend payout ratio is 88.14%.

Insider Buying and Selling at Fastenal

In other news, Director Michael J. Ancius sold 3,000 shares of Fastenal stock in a transaction on Tuesday, July 28th. The shares were sold at an average price of $49.00, for a total transaction of $147,000.00. Following the completion of the sale, the director directly owned 58,690 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $2,875,810. The trade was a 4.86% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this link. Company insiders own 0.28% of the company’s stock.

Fastenal Profile

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.