Los Angeles Capital Management LLC Trims Position in Fastenal Company $FAST

Los Angeles Capital Management LLC lessened its stake in shares of Fastenal Company (NASDAQ:FAST) by 88.7% during the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm owned 55,394 shares of the company’s stock after selling 435,992 shares during the period. Los Angeles Capital Management LLC’s holdings in Fastenal were worth $2,302,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission.

Several other institutional investors have also modified their holdings of the stock. Vanguard Group Inc. raised its holdings in shares of Fastenal by 1.6% during the 3rd quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 151,515,539 shares of the company’s stock worth $7,430,322,000 after acquiring an additional 2,346,045 shares during the period. Geode Capital Management LLC raised its holdings in shares of Fastenal by 1.9% during the 4th quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 37,699,836 shares of the company’s stock worth $1,508,216,000 after acquiring an additional 685,047 shares during the period. Invesco Ltd. raised its holdings in shares of Fastenal by 14.0% during the 3rd quarter. Invesco Ltd. now owns 18,215,875 shares of the company’s stock worth $893,307,000 after acquiring an additional 2,242,116 shares during the period. Norges Bank purchased a new position in shares of Fastenal during the 4th quarter worth $646,046,000. Finally, Bank of America Corp DE raised its holdings in shares of Fastenal by 1.1% during the 3rd quarter. Bank of America Corp DE now owns 15,604,974 shares of the company’s stock worth $765,268,000 after acquiring an additional 173,581 shares during the period. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 81.38% of the company’s stock.

Fastenal Stock Performance

NASDAQ:FAST opened at $46.58 on Wednesday. The company has a fifty day simple moving average of $45.13 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $44.12. The company has a market cap of $53.48 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 40.86, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.92 and a beta of 0.73. The company has a quick ratio of 2.34, a current ratio of 4.39 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.03. Fastenal Company has a 52 week low of $38.97 and a 52 week high of $50.63.

Fastenal (NASDAQ:FAST) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Monday, April 13th. The company reported $0.30 EPS for the quarter, hitting the consensus estimate of $0.30. Fastenal had a net margin of 15.39% and a return on equity of 33.25%. The business had revenue of $2.20 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $2.19 billion. During the same quarter in the previous year, the firm posted $0.52 earnings per share. The company’s quarterly revenue was up 12.4% compared to the same quarter last year. As a group, equities analysts anticipate that Fastenal Company will post 1.24 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Fastenal Dividend Announcement

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

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several research analysts have recently commented on the company. Wolfe Research reduced their price target on Fastenal from $46.00 to $45.00 and set an “underperform” rating on the stock in a report on Tuesday, April 14th. Barclays set a $46.00 price objective on shares of Fastenal and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a report on Wednesday, June 3rd. Benchmark restated a “buy” rating on shares of Fastenal in a report on Thursday, March 5th. Morgan Stanley restated a “positive” rating and issued a $45.00 price objective on shares of Fastenal in a report on Thursday, March 5th. Finally, Jefferies Financial Group reiterated a “buy” rating on shares of Fastenal in a research note on Thursday, June 4th. Five equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, six have assigned a Hold rating and two have assigned a Sell rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, Fastenal presently has an average rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $49.85.

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.