Fastenal Company $FAST Shares Bought by Harvest Portfolios Group Inc.

Harvest Portfolios Group Inc. boosted its holdings in shares of Fastenal Company (NASDAQ:FAST) by 33.3% in the fourth quarter, HoldingsChannel.com reports. The fund owned 59,869 shares of the company’s stock after buying an additional 14,964 shares during the quarter. Harvest Portfolios Group Inc.’s holdings in Fastenal were worth $2,403,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other hedge funds and other institutional investors also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Elyxium Wealth LLC acquired a new position in Fastenal during the fourth quarter worth about $25,000. REAP Financial Group LLC acquired a new position in shares of Fastenal in the third quarter valued at approximately $30,000. Field & Main Bank acquired a new position in shares of Fastenal in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $30,000. Tucker Asset Management LLC acquired a new position in shares of Fastenal in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $33,000. Finally, Tradewinds Capital Management LLC acquired a new position in shares of Fastenal in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $35,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 81.38% of the company’s stock.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, Director Reyne K. Wisecup sold 36,920 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred 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 of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $1,893,600. This represents a 48.00% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Company insiders own 0.28% of the company’s stock.

Fastenal Stock Performance

Shares of FAST stock opened at $43.68 on Thursday. Fastenal Company has a one year low of $38.97 and a one year high of $50.63. 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 company has a 50 day moving average price of $45.17 and a 200 day moving average price of $43.70. The firm has a market capitalization of $50.15 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 38.32, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.77 and a beta of 0.75.

Fastenal (NASDAQ:FAST) last issued 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 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 posted $0.52 earnings per share. Fastenal’s revenue for the quarter was up 12.4% compared to the same quarter last year. Sell-side analysts anticipate that Fastenal Company will post 1.23 EPS for the current year.

Fastenal Announces Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, May 26th. Investors of record on Tuesday, April 28th will be given a dividend of $0.24 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Tuesday, April 28th. This represents a $0.96 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.2%. Fastenal’s dividend payout ratio is 84.21%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of equities analysts have recently weighed in on the stock. JPMorgan Chase & Co. boosted their price objective on shares of Fastenal from $46.00 to $47.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research report on Thursday, April 9th. Benchmark reissued a “buy” rating on shares of Fastenal in a research report on Thursday, March 5th. Barclays boosted their price objective on shares of Fastenal from $44.00 to $45.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a research report on Thursday, April 16th. Weiss Ratings reissued a “buy (b-)” rating on shares of Fastenal in a research report on Friday, March 27th. Finally, Sanford C. Bernstein reissued an “underperform” rating and issued a $42.00 price objective on shares of Fastenal in a research report on Tuesday, April 14th. Five research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, six have given a Hold rating and two have assigned a Sell rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, the company presently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $49.77.

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.