Public Employees Retirement System of Ohio Cuts Stock Holdings in Fastenal Company $FAST

Public Employees Retirement System of Ohio reduced its stake in Fastenal Company (NASDAQ:FAST) by 11.0% during the 2nd quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 423,576 shares of the company’s stock after selling 52,227 shares during the period. Public Employees Retirement System of Ohio’s holdings in Fastenal were worth $20,344,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently bought and sold shares of the stock. Fayez Sarofim & Co increased its holdings in Fastenal by 5.9% during the 2nd quarter. Fayez Sarofim & Co now owns 6,357 shares of the company’s stock worth $305,000 after purchasing an additional 357 shares during the period. Proficio Capital Partners LLC acquired a new position in shares of Fastenal during the second quarter worth about $664,000. Pure Financial Advisors LLC grew its position in shares of Fastenal by 3.4% during the second quarter. Pure Financial Advisors LLC now owns 7,161 shares of the company’s stock worth $344,000 after buying an additional 235 shares in the last quarter. Corient Private Wealth LP purchased a new stake in shares of Fastenal during the second quarter worth approximately $46,092,000. Finally, Ausdal Financial Partners Inc. increased its stake in shares of Fastenal by 2.9% during the second quarter. Ausdal Financial Partners Inc. now owns 8,406 shares of the company’s stock worth $404,000 after buying an additional 239 shares during the period. 81.38% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Insider Buying and Selling at Fastenal

In related news, Director Rita J. Heise sold 34,964 shares of the stock in a transaction on Wednesday, August 5th. The shares were sold at an average price of $50.05, for a total transaction of $1,749,948.20. Following the completion of the sale, the director owned 20,000 shares in the company, valued at $1,001,000. This represents a 63.61% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at the SEC website. Also, 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 transaction, the director owned 58,690 shares in the company, valued at approximately $2,875,810. This represents a 4.86% decrease in their ownership of the stock. Additional details regarding this sale are available in the official SEC disclosure. 0.28% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

FAST has been the subject of several analyst reports. Sanford C. Bernstein reiterated an “underperform” rating on shares of Fastenal in a report on Wednesday, July 15th. Rothschild & Co Redburn set a $55.00 price objective on shares of Fastenal and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Monday, July 13th. Barclays lowered their target price on shares of Fastenal from $47.00 to $46.00 and set an “equal weight” rating for the company in a research note on Thursday, July 16th. Morgan Stanley increased their target price on Fastenal from $48.00 to $52.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a report on Thursday, July 16th. Finally, Jefferies Financial Group reaffirmed a “buy” rating on shares of Fastenal in a report on Thursday, June 4th. Five research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, five have issued a Hold rating and two have assigned a Sell rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, the stock has an average rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $49.17.

Fastenal Price Performance

Shares of NASDAQ:FAST opened at $49.78 on Friday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.01, a current ratio of 4.18 and a quick ratio of 2.21. Fastenal Company has a 12 month low of $38.97 and a 12 month high of $52.92. The firm has a market capitalization of $57.12 billion, a P/E ratio of 42.19, a P/E/G ratio of 3.11 and a beta of 0.72. The company’s fifty day moving average price is $48.45 and its 200 day moving average price is $46.50.

Fastenal (NASDAQ:FAST) last posted its earnings results on Tuesday, July 14th. The company reported $0.33 EPS for the quarter, hitting analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.33. The business had revenue of $2.39 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $2.34 billion. Fastenal had a return on equity of 34.03% and a net margin of 15.45%.The business’s revenue was up 14.7% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the previous year, the firm earned $0.29 earnings per share. As a group, sell-side analysts predict that Fastenal Company will post 1.26 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Fastenal Increases Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, August 25th. Stockholders of record on Tuesday, July 28th were issued a $0.26 dividend. This represents a $1.04 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 2.1%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Tuesday, July 28th. This is a positive change from Fastenal’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.24. Fastenal’s dividend payout ratio is presently 88.14%.

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.