Fastenal (NASDAQ:FAST) Shares Sold by Motley Fool Asset Management LLC

Motley Fool Asset Management LLC trimmed its stake in shares of Fastenal (NASDAQ:FAST) by 9.7% during the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm owned 207,486 shares of the company’s stock after selling 22,171 shares during the period. Fastenal comprises 0.8% of Motley Fool Asset Management LLC’s holdings, making the stock its 26th largest position. Motley Fool Asset Management LLC’s holdings in Fastenal were worth $14,920,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission.

Other institutional investors also recently bought and sold shares of the company. Vanguard Group Inc. grew its stake in shares of Fastenal by 0.8% during the 4th quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 72,300,792 shares of the company’s stock worth $5,199,150,000 after purchasing an additional 592,583 shares during the period. State Street Corp grew its position in Fastenal by 5.1% during the third quarter. State Street Corp now owns 27,989,485 shares of the company’s stock valued at $1,999,009,000 after buying an additional 1,346,863 shares during the period. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. increased its holdings in Fastenal by 4.5% in the fourth quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. now owns 20,765,044 shares of the company’s stock valued at $1,493,214,000 after buying an additional 886,999 shares in the last quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC increased its holdings in Fastenal by 1.4% in the fourth quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 16,918,464 shares of the company’s stock valued at $1,214,002,000 after buying an additional 234,713 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Norges Bank purchased a new stake in shares of Fastenal during the 4th quarter worth about $522,558,000. 81.38% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Fastenal Stock Performance

Shares of FAST stock opened at $78.01 on Thursday. The stock’s 50-day moving average price is $75.46 and its 200 day moving average price is $76.11. The company has a quick ratio of 2.28, a current ratio of 4.67 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.03. The stock has a market capitalization of $44.73 billion, a PE ratio of 38.81, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 3.58 and a beta of 1.04. Fastenal has a 52-week low of $61.36 and a 52-week high of $84.88.

Fastenal (NASDAQ:FAST) last released its earnings results on Friday, January 17th. The company reported $0.46 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.48 by ($0.02). Fastenal had a net margin of 15.25% and a return on equity of 32.55%. The company had revenue of $1.82 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $1.84 billion. During the same period in the previous year, the firm posted $0.46 EPS. The company’s revenue for the quarter was up 3.7% on a year-over-year basis. As a group, equities research analysts forecast that Fastenal will post 2.15 EPS for the current year.

Fastenal Increases Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, February 28th. Stockholders of record on Friday, January 31st were issued a $0.43 dividend. This is an increase from Fastenal’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.39. The ex-dividend date was Friday, January 31st. This represents a $1.72 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 2.20%. Fastenal’s payout ratio is presently 85.57%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

FAST has been the topic of a number of recent research reports. HSBC lowered shares of Fastenal from a “hold” rating to a “reduce” rating and set a $70.00 price target on the stock. in a research report on Wednesday, December 11th. Stifel Nicolaus cut their price objective on Fastenal from $86.00 to $82.00 and set a “hold” rating for the company in a research report on Tuesday, January 21st. William Blair raised Fastenal from a “market perform” rating to an “outperform” rating in a research report on Monday, March 10th. Hsbc Global Res cut shares of Fastenal from a “hold” rating to a “moderate sell” rating in a research report on Wednesday, December 11th. Finally, Jefferies Financial Group lifted their target price on Fastenal from $74.00 to $85.00 and gave the company a “hold” rating in a report on Friday, December 6th. Two investment analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, eight have issued a hold rating and two have given a buy rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company presently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $76.91.

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.