Geode Capital Management LLC Purchases 685,047 Shares of Fastenal Company $FAST

Geode Capital Management LLC grew its position in Fastenal Company (NASDAQ:FAST) by 1.9% in the fourth quarter, HoldingsChannel.com reports. The firm owned 37,699,836 shares of the company’s stock after acquiring an additional 685,047 shares during the period. Geode Capital Management LLC’s holdings in Fastenal were worth $1,508,216,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other hedge funds have also modified their holdings of FAST. Elyxium Wealth LLC bought a new position in shares of Fastenal in the fourth quarter worth approximately $25,000. REAP Financial Group LLC bought a new position in shares of Fastenal in the third quarter worth approximately $30,000. Field & Main Bank bought a new position in shares of Fastenal in the fourth quarter worth approximately $30,000. Tucker Asset Management LLC bought a new position in shares of Fastenal in the fourth quarter worth approximately $33,000. Finally, Tradewinds Capital Management LLC bought a new position in shares of Fastenal in the fourth quarter worth approximately $35,000. 81.38% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of research firms have weighed in on FAST. Wolfe Research dropped their price target on shares of Fastenal from $46.00 to $45.00 and set an “underperform” rating for the company in a research report on Tuesday, April 14th. Morgan Stanley reiterated a “positive” rating and issued a $45.00 price target on shares of Fastenal in a research report on Thursday, March 5th. Raymond James Financial set a $48.00 price target on shares of Fastenal in a research report on Thursday, March 5th. Robert W. Baird dropped their target price on shares of Fastenal from $52.00 to $50.00 and set an “outperform” rating for the company in a research report on Tuesday, April 14th. Finally, Benchmark restated a “buy” rating on shares of Fastenal in a research report on Thursday, March 5th. Five investment analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, six have assigned a Hold rating and two have issued a Sell rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, Fastenal presently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $49.77.

Fastenal Price Performance

Shares of NASDAQ:FAST opened at $44.76 on Friday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.03, a quick ratio of 2.34 and a current ratio of 4.39. The firm has a fifty day moving average price of $44.98 and a 200 day moving average price of $43.83. Fastenal Company has a fifty-two week low of $38.97 and a fifty-two week high of $50.63. The firm has a market cap of $51.39 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 39.26, a P/E/G ratio of 2.86 and a beta of 0.75.

Fastenal (NASDAQ:FAST) last issued its earnings results on Monday, April 13th. The company reported $0.30 earnings per share for the quarter, hitting analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.30. Fastenal had a net margin of 15.39% and a return on equity of 33.25%. The firm had revenue of $2.20 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $2.19 billion. During the same quarter in the prior year, the business earned $0.52 earnings per share. Fastenal’s revenue for the quarter was up 12.4% on a year-over-year basis. As a group, sell-side analysts expect that Fastenal Company will post 1.23 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Fastenal Dividend Announcement

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

Insider Buying and Selling at Fastenal

In related news, Director Reyne K. Wisecup sold 36,920 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Thursday, March 5th. The shares were sold at an average price of $47.34, for a total transaction of $1,747,792.80. Following the completion of the transaction, the director owned 40,000 shares in the company, valued at approximately $1,893,600. This represents a 48.00% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. Corporate 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.