Fastenal (NASDAQ:FAST) Shares Bought by BRITISH COLUMBIA INVESTMENT MANAGEMENT Corp

BRITISH COLUMBIA INVESTMENT MANAGEMENT Corp grew its holdings in shares of Fastenal (NASDAQ:FAST) by 60.7% in the 2nd quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor owned 109,651 shares of the company’s stock after acquiring an additional 41,429 shares during the period. BRITISH COLUMBIA INVESTMENT MANAGEMENT Corp’s holdings in Fastenal were worth $6,890,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other large investors also recently modified their holdings of the business. Central Valley Advisors LLC acquired a new position in Fastenal in the second quarter worth about $28,000. MCF Advisors LLC grew its stake in Fastenal by 2,172.2% in the first quarter. MCF Advisors LLC now owns 409 shares of the company’s stock worth $32,000 after purchasing an additional 391 shares in the last quarter. Triad Wealth Partners LLC acquired a new position in Fastenal in the second quarter worth about $32,000. Crewe Advisors LLC grew its stake in Fastenal by 528.4% in the second quarter. Crewe Advisors LLC now owns 509 shares of the company’s stock worth $32,000 after purchasing an additional 428 shares in the last quarter. Finally, OFI Invest Asset Management acquired a new position in Fastenal in the second quarter worth about $35,000. 81.38% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Insider Activity

In other news, CEO Daniel L. Florness sold 50,000 shares of Fastenal stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, September 12th. The stock was sold at an average price of $69.68, for a total transaction of $3,484,000.00. Following the sale, the chief executive officer now owns 286,018 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $19,929,734.24. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this link. In related news, CEO Daniel L. Florness sold 50,000 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, September 12th. The stock was sold at an average price of $69.68, for a total transaction of $3,484,000.00. Following the sale, the chief executive officer now owns 286,018 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $19,929,734.24. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available through the SEC website. Also, CEO Daniel L. Florness sold 45,744 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, August 21st. The stock was sold at an average price of $68.14, for a total value of $3,116,996.16. Following the sale, the chief executive officer now directly owns 286,018 shares in the company, valued at approximately $19,489,266.52. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Corporate insiders own 0.41% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of research firms recently commented on FAST. Jefferies Financial Group decreased their price target on Fastenal from $74.00 to $65.00 and set a “hold” rating for the company in a research note on Thursday, July 11th. Stifel Nicolaus reissued a “buy” rating and issued a $80.00 target price (down previously from $85.00) on shares of Fastenal in a report on Monday, July 15th. Stephens reissued an “equal weight” rating and issued a $56.00 target price on shares of Fastenal in a report on Monday, July 15th. Finally, Morgan Stanley initiated coverage on shares of Fastenal in a report on Friday, September 6th. They issued an “equal weight” rating and a $72.00 target price on the stock. Seven analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and one has given a buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company presently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $67.43.

Fastenal Stock Performance

FAST opened at $71.65 on Friday. The business’s 50 day moving average is $68.20 and its 200-day moving average is $68.37. The stock has a market cap of $41.02 billion, a PE ratio of 35.65, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 3.92 and a beta of 1.01. The company has a current ratio of 4.39, a quick ratio of 2.29 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.04. Fastenal has a twelve month low of $53.94 and a twelve month high of $79.04.

Fastenal (NASDAQ:FAST) last released its quarterly earnings results on Friday, July 12th. The company reported $0.51 earnings per share for the quarter, meeting analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.51. The company had revenue of $1.92 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $1.91 billion. Fastenal had a return on equity of 33.54% and a net margin of 15.54%. The business’s revenue for the quarter was up 1.8% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the previous year, the company posted $0.52 earnings per share. On average, analysts predict that Fastenal will post 2.04 earnings per share for the current year.

Fastenal Announces Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, August 23rd. Stockholders of record on Friday, July 26th were issued a dividend of $0.39 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, July 26th. This represents a $1.56 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 2.18%. Fastenal’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 77.61%.

Fastenal Profile

Fastenal Company, together with its subsidiaries, engages in the wholesale distribution of industrial and construction supplies in the United States, Canada, Mexico, North America, and internationally. It offers fasteners, and related industrial and construction supplies under the Fastenal name. The company's fastener products include threaded fasteners, bolts, nuts, screws, studs, and related washers that are used in manufactured products and construction projects, as well as in the maintenance and repair of machines.